The Three - The Wind of Revolution
by Lyou
Summary: Part two of the series "The Three". The war had begun, and the three Aces found themselves standing on different sides. How would things turn out for them? Post StrikerS. The what-if situation. This is a story of friendship, courage, hope... and some NanoFate. Reviews are highly appreciated! Chapter 6 up
1. Chapter 1

Hello again everyone :) So here is the first chapter of the second part of the series, The Three. Hopefully you had enjoyed the first part and is ready for the story afterward! As always, reviews are very much appreciated, though I am really not good at making responses, but they do cheer me up and make me want to write more and more.

Anyway, I hope you will enjoy the new series! And Happy Holiday!

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (ie. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 01 Beginning of the New Age**

.

.

The world as they know it had ended.

Teanna Lanster was sitting at the corner of the conference room, watching people in black uniforms rushing past and busy talking with each other. She did not know exactly what to do now here. The only thing she knew was that things did not look good at all.

An hour ago she was just gathering some paperwork from the Information Department of Ground Office, and then suddenly the news came out. Yes, the news. Everybody had stopped working and stared at the TV hung in the room with shock then. They were shock because what the reporter was saying did not make any sense, because the picture on the screen was awful.

Teanna recognized one of the names listed there. She knew it because she had come in contact with the man several times before, and she knew that man because he bear the same last name as her mentor, her ex-supervisor. He was her step brother.

He was dead. Killed. Murdered.

And the man who did this appeared so suddenly after the pictures on the television. He made a short speech about something like the coming of a new era and the needs of change. The man must be insane, because she could not understand a single word he said.

Then… and then he said this. The Ground Office would be an independent organization from now on, and he declared war to the Bureau. To them. Teanna did not know what game the lieutenant-general was playing, but she knows danger when she sees one.

And the way the people in the office were looking at her was a clear indication that she was in danger.

Another enforcer, a man in his forties, had come running to her, and dragged her out of the office. The people did nothing as they watched them left, but the looks on their eyes still haunted her even as she sat here, several kilometers away from the Main Office. It was a look mixed of confusion, fear, and… enmity.

"Young lady, are you alright?"

A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Teanna shook the unpleasant ideas out from her head, and looked up to the origin of the voice. It was the very same man that pulled her out from the Main Office. Teanna felt her throat dry, maybe she should thank him. After all, had he not acted, she might be dead by now.

"Um. Yes sir, I'm fine. Thank you."

That did not sound out like an appreciation. She cursed inside her mind for her clumsiness at words. If the man had minded, he did not show it. Instead, he offered a steaming paper cup to the sitting girl. The embarrassed girl took the offer, and murmured another thank-you. The man smiled and sat down next to her, holding a paper cup of his own.

"Sir made me sound old. My name is Lichar Ryerson. Call me Lichar or Ryerson is fine. Well, I don't suppose you are going with the assaulting team?"

"What?"

The smile on the man's face widened a little, and Teanna felt utterly stupid. It must be what was going on for the past while when she spaced out.

"Some of us will be breaking into the Lieutenant-General's office to arrest him. He was the source of all the troubles, after all."

Teanna nodded awkwardly at the information that she was supposed to know. The words did not register at first as her mind was still scolding at herself for being so artlessness around other enforcers – it was much a disgrace of everything Fate had taught her. But then she looked up to Ryerson, frowning.

"They are going into the Main Office?"

The man nodded casually and took a sip of his coffee. Teanna wanted to protest for the dangerousness lying underneath the mission, but she stopped herself, waiting for the elder enforcer to finish off the sentence. Ryerson raise an eyebrow, but said nothing in his mind.

"Yes. You see the expression on those people back in the Office, right? We don't think they knew about what happened, and we don't think they _wanted_ what happened. That's why some of us will be trying to take him down."

They are enforcers. Arresting criminals and protecting peace is their job. They are brave warriors and dutiful guardians of justice system – they fear not of the danger ahead of them. Teanna respected and admired that, it was part of the reason she chose this career. But still, he worried for her colleagues.

"Are you going with them, Ryerson-san?"

"Me? No. I am staying here at the base." He chuckled. This girl reminded him of his own daughter, somehow. "While the team is gone, the others and I will be trying to get a hold with the Headquarter and tell them what happened here."

He gave Teanna a reassuring pat on the shoulder before standing up, downing the last bit of the black coffee in his cup. His grin was a little bit childish. It reminded Teanna of Fate. Sometimes she smiled like that too, like an innocent kid. It must be a trait of enforcers, she thought to herself, for they had seen so many cruelty and darkness in the missions they took. It was perhaps a way for them to remain sane and determined to fight with the same belief.

"It will be fine. You will see."

Teanna nodded quietly, and watched Ryerson walking away.

.

But it did not turn out fine. Little did they know, the number of people involved in this riot was far more than they had anticipated.

The realization came with yet another announcement made by Vindexta through the broadcast of the media. The enforcers at the conference room watched helplessly as their colleagues and friends being executed on the spot by the Capital Defense Corps. Some of them were so shocked they forgot to cry, and others lowered their heads in moments of grief.

Teanna felt cold inside listening to the man spitting out heartless words. She knew Vindexta had expected this assault. He was using it against them in the public opinion. He said that the Ground Office was betrayed by the Dimensional Navy. He even said that his people was what remained of 'justice', and he would protect this justice with the mean of mass weaponary.

Now, even if anyone doubted Vindexta's intention, they would not stand up against him. They had seen the power of the mass weapon, and they would be afraid to oppose such a force. She knew this because even she herself was afraid.

But it was not the worst.

"Watch out! Snipers! They are coming…ah!"

The warning was cut off by the sound of gunshots. People were shouting outside, accompanied by even more gunshots.

"It's the enemy!"

Ryerson slammed his fist down at the long table in front of him, and left the team that was trying to communicate with the Headquarter. He looked a little anxious, but still calm enough to move everyone around.

"We have to retreat now."

"But where do we go? The Headquarter was still unreachable."

A younger man asked with a hint of exasperation. Several others nodded, and picked up their weapons nervously. Ryerson paused for a moment, ducking behind the table to avoid the advancing gunfire. They could not hold the door for long.

"To the Saint Church."

Teanna heard her own voice speaking those words. She did not know why she said that, but now everyone turned to look at her in surprise, she had no other choice but to take a leap of faith.

"The-the Saint Church is closest to our current position, right? The Capital Air Force base is close as well, but the enemy might be expecting us to go that way, and besides, to get there we need to cross the busiest part of the city. It Vindexta's troop decided to attack there, many innocent people would be hurt."

The room was silent for a long while. The only sound echoing in the room was the gunshots from outside. The enforcers exchanged looks while considering the option. It was not long that they made the decision.

"Alright people, you heard the young woman. Let's move!"

The people in the room quickly nodded and gathered the essentials. They moved quietly and quickly toward the backdoor. Teanna was going to follow, but she stopped when she noticed Lichard Ryerson walking back to the communication screen.

"Ryerson-san, we should go!"

"It's okay. Go with them. I will catch up." The man smiled again, but it was different from all other smiles he had given her. "You know, enforcer Lanster, you reminded me of another enforce I had worked with before."

It was then Teanna realized what the man was doing. He was staying behind because he believed he would reach the Headquarter and delay the enemy, even if the cost was his own live. He was making the sacrifice so the others would have more time. It was something she learned from the times she followed Fate in their missions. She did not like that, but she had come to accept that.

"Enforcer Fate T. Harlawon was my mentor."

She replied quietly while taking one last long gaze at the man. She wanted to remember this man who had showed her generosity. She wanted to tell others about this man, after the chaos was settled, that there was someone who dedicated his own live for the others.

"Ah, no wonder."

The man's eyes softened even more as he recalled the memory of the elite enforcer, and he smiled fondly. And Teanna could tell, even in her absence, even in the form of distant memory, the ace enforcer had brought light of hope to them.

"She trained you well, Lanseter. I'm sure she would be proud of you."

Gunshots were fired again, and they both ducked. There was not much time left. Teanna backed away toward the door, but she did not forget to salute to the man with tearful eyes.

"And you, sir. We are proud of you."

The man smiled genuinely. He pulled out a picture from his front pocket and tossed it to Teanna.

"If you see her by chance, tell her to be proud of me."

Teanna nodded and held the picture in her hands carefully. "I would, sir."

And she raced out from the backdoor, joining with the others. She ran and ran, until finally the gunshots had become faraway noises. And she looked down to the picture.

Tears fell down from her cheek as she looked at the man and the little girl in the picture. The man in the picture was a much younger Lichard Ryerson. And the little girl… the little girl, even though Teanna did not know her name, she knew, it was Ryerson's daughter.

.

But even with someone staying behind, the enemy still caught up with the escaping enforcers. It was a bloody battle. Teanna watched many of the experienced enforcers being shot in front of her, and she was helpless to stop it. She had no chance against the army gaining on them. All she could do was not look back and run for her live.

She hated how powerless she was to save these good people. She hated how the Ground Force just turned against them. She hated what Vindexta had done. She hated how things had turned out. Most of all, she knew that later on, the media Vindexta controlled would report this massacre as justified self-defense of the Ground, because they were 'traitors'. And she hated it.

They were less than a mile away from the border of the Balkan Self-Governed Area, but the enemy was gaining on them fast. Teanna honestly did not know if they would make it, or if they would be killed so brutally like all others who had passed.

Probably the later case, had the Capital Air Force not arrived on time.

Teanna had heard the helicopter coming before it had descended to the land, right in between the Ground army and the escaping enforcers. As it got closer to the ground, the current had become so strong that the enforcers and the Ground Force army had all raised their hands to block the current. Several mages landed behind it, holding their staffs up threateningly at the brown uniform army. A man stood in the front most of the group, shouting to the relentless army.

"This is the 1578th squadron, please stop the battle right now. I repeat, this is the 1578th squadron of the Capital Air Force. Ceasefire is requested immediately, please put down your weapon at once, or we will resume in force!"

As the man talked, the mages rushed as many enforcers into the cabin of the helicopter. The ones who could not fit in the small space and unable to fly were picked up by the mages. Teanna herself was lifted up by a woman looking only few years older than her. She wanted to tell her to get the captain out from the shooting range, but the wind was too loud.

The captain of the squadron continued the persuasion. But as soon as the current died down enough for the people to move, the leader of the Ground army just gave his people a gesture.

"No! Run!"

Teanna heard herself shouting over the noise of the roaring engine.

But she was still slower than the bullets flying in the air. The captain took several hits, and fell backward. Others from the squadron sensed danger, and were shouting to each other to get moving.

The helicopter pilot reacted quickly and restarted the engine. The rigid frame made by tough material served well to shield its cargos against the gunshots. But the defenseless mages were not so lucky. Several of them were shot by the stray bullets. Most were only slightly injured, but some fell toward the earth.

Over the chaos, Teanna heard people shouting for them to get out. She looked up to the mage holding her, and saw horror and tears in her eyes. She knew the people shot, and perhaps were even close friends with some. Teanna felt terribly sorry, but their lives were still on the line. If they did not move now, they would be dead as well.

"Please."

She whispered to the young woman, who was shook back from the shock of witnessing the terrible deaths of her colleagues, and nodded to the enforcer in her arms.

"Where to?"

The woman whispered back softly. Her voice sounded so distant and quiet. Teanna thought it was because of what happened to her people, but realized it was only partly correct. Through the reflection in the woman's eyes, she saw herself crying.

"Saint Church."

She did not know when she had started crying, but now that she had realized it, she could no longer control it. Tears poured down from her cheeks, and she knew she must look so vulnerable now but she did not care. The woman nodded slightly, and made a sharp turn. She flied forward with full speed, leading what remained of the 1578th squadron and the enforcers away from the battlefield. From death.

.

The Ground army followed in hot pursuit after them, but the aerial mages proved to be the faster. They arrived the Belkan Self-Governed Area ahead of the army, but did not lose them completely. The squadron dropped them off quietly, and quickly left the people there to return to their own base.

Teanna did not blame them for not wanting to be involved in this mess any more. After all, if not for saving them, the squadron would not have lost its leader and many of its soldiers. The young woman who had carried her gave her a sad smile before leaving with her colleagues. Teanna did not even get the chance to ask for her name, or thank her for saving her live for that matter.

There was just simply no time for a proper conversation. Even now that they had landed in the Belkan Self-Governed Area, the enemy was still close behind. She wiped away the stains of tears on her cheeks, and helped a wounded man up, carrying him toward the Saint Church.

But before they had walked far, somebody had come out to meet them.

"Major General Gracia!"

Teanna recognized that young knight. At the end of the operation of Riot Force Six, Fate and Hayate had brought her to the Main Office and several other places. She had met many high-ranking officers then. Carim Gracia was one of them.

The Belkan knight walked toward them quickly, with a serious look on her face. Teanna did not know what she was going to say, but she had a sinking feeling that it could not be good.

"I have heard of the betrayal of the Ground Office." She stated simply. It was good that way. Time was running out, and so there was no need to leave the unnecessary politics in right now. "As much as I wanted to help you, my position would not allow me to do so. I need to take into consideration of my people here."

Teanna felt something inside falling. Maybe it was a wrong move to come here. She should have thought of it before hand. Now they were being chased by the Ground Force army, leaving the protection of the Belkan Self-Governed Area would mean death.

But Carim was not finished yet.

"I couldn't help you fight against the Ground troop. The Saint Church will remain neutral in this dispute as long as neither side forced us to choose. You could get food, supplies, and rest in this region, but you are not allowed to use any means of force on my land. What say you?"

The enforcers looked at each other, unsure of what to do. They had thought that the Saint Church would of course stand by their side and they could use this place as the base for counterattacks to the Ground Office. This result seemed almost unacceptable.

Teanna was the only one to respond. She stepped forward to meet Carim, and nodded. "We will not trouble the people here. The transportation station is all we will need for now."

"Follow me then."

Carim turned and started walking. Some of the enforcers still seemed unsure, but Teanna just shook her head and followed after Carim. The others soon pursued. Well, there was no other option they could think of now anyway.

The station was not far away. The group had soon arrived. Carim nodded in acknowledgement to Teanna, and quickly excused herself to go back to the gate. The Ground army would be here soon, and she had an announcement to make to them. Teanna was uncertain of whether they would listen to the woman, but the blonde just smiled mysteriously to her, and said she would have her way to convince them.

Teanna looked on, until the woman had disappeared after the walls of the old buildings. Then, she turned to look at her people. She felt her heart tightened and tears threatening to spill out again. There were more of them when they had assembled together to the conference room that afternoon. Much more.

She took a deep breath, and called out others to prepare for the teleportation spell. The men and women must have felt the same way she did, because the entire time they were setting up, no one had said a word.

Few minutes later, they had completed the preparation, and every single one of them poured in their magic to activate the spell. The giant circle underneath them brightened instantly and intensely. A warm sensation washed over their bodies.

And in a blink of eye, the sight of the old Belkan buildings had disappeared. It was replaced by the familiar view of the Headquarter.

A man was standing there, waiting for them.

.

.

*****.***.***.***.*****

.

.

Vita stood at the back of the main conference room in the Capital Air Force office, watching more and more people pouring into the already crowded room. They had been summoned here shortly after the 1578th squadron reported back their encounter with the Ground Force.

So it had begun. She sighed inwardly, rubbing her temple for the headache that did not exist. She had seen countless wars in the long history of humankind, and thought she had grown used to it by now. But this time was just different. Despite what she had learned about the natures of human, their greed and cruelty and unfairness, she had hoped the tragedies she had seen so many times before would not repeat this time. She had wished for a peaceful life for Hayate. But it just couldn't be helped, could it?

The gathered Air Force mages were talking among each other, but it was just conversations, not discussions. That could not be helped either – most of them were soldiers, not commanders. Their specialty is in the battle, not in politics. They can work with the other two branches fine, but they still need orders and objectives.

And it was order that they did not have.

The captains of each division had gathered in the front of the room, discussing their options. They had been trying to contact the Headquarter to find Marshal Largo Kiel for a while now, but nothing seemed to be working.

Of course they could not reach the Headquarter. The communication system was sabotaged. The whole point of this operation was to isolate Mid-Childa from the other worlds.

After few more hours of attempt, the captains finally came to the realization that they could not fix this problem. Not in a short time anyway. The captains finally made the decision, and assembled their squadrons.

The leader of the Capital Air Force, the man named Kentori Cendrik, stood out and turned on the broadcasting inside the base.

"Attention all squadron, this is Lieutenant-General Kentoru Cendrik speaking."

Vita lazily watched the man making his speech. She had expected this far. After all those years of wars, the countless rebirths with the Book of Darkness, she had learned how different types of people handle things in their respective stereotypes. Cendrik was easy to see through, his actions predictable even to the least politically mature of the Cloud Knights.

With no other higher command available, Kentoru Cendrik had decided to take on leadership of the Air Force. He made the point that they were most likely caught in the middle of a simple but heated political dispute between the Ground and the Navy. He would lead the people to resolve this conflict of interests to reunite both sides, and to do that they would not step in too deep into the politics, and shall not do this by force. It was what they are good at, he said, but not the only thing they are good at.

What they do best is to protect others. He said.

Many people cheered at his speech then. But Vita remained motionless. She had seen the same hope being arose, only to be put out shortly afterward when reality hit them, for far too many times. She shook her head lightly.

"Vita-chan?"

Nanoha, who was standing next to her, noticed the expression on Vita's face. It was nothing the sort of cheerfulness or approval that would be more appropriate to the atmosphere around after Cendrik had made the speech. If she was not mistaken, it looked more like sympathy in the seven-year-old-looking girl's blue eyes.

"It's no use."

The knight of the iron hammer did not even look at her friend when she said that. She shook her head again, ignoring the questioning look from Nanoha. She waved a hand, and walked away from the enthusiastic people. Who still had not realized, or who had refused to believe, the world as they knew it had ended.

.

.

.

(To be continued…)

.

* * *

A/N:

About the title, I choose that because one, I could not find anything else suitable to put there and second, because it is past December 21st! As some of you might know, December 21st is the last day of the fifth cycle in the Mayan calendar, which means the very next day is technically speaking the beginning of a new cycle! The title is a way to say 'Happy New Era' from my part.

Also, as you might have noticed, I changed the formatting a little. I'm not entirely sure if that makes it easier or harder to read. If you have any suggestions please let me know :)

And I did not mean to destroy the good mode of holiday, if you are disturbed in any shape or form by the plot or the terrible writing, I offer you my most sincere apology… because more is coming :p

Until the next time and again, have a happy holiday :)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (ie. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

.

.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 02 Helen the Beauty**

.

.

On Earth, there are many mythos of the ancient time. Sometimes they take form of tales of brave knights or princes who take on dangerous quests to rescue the people abused by beasty creatures and cunning villains. Sometimes they take form of religious mythologies that praise the virtues of gods and warriors who are blessed with godly power. Sometimes they are just the product of imaginations by writers and artists. Sometimes, they are based on historical events whose records are unfortunately lost, or are too old to be documented.

One of such stories is the war between two ancient countries. It is a legend well-known to most people in the planet. A war caused by love – a prince falling for the beautiful queen of the neighboring country.

Vindexta had always found this story intriguing ever since he read about it at a much younger age. He despised the powerless prince. He was weak, ruthless, and beyond all ignorant in his opinion. A man like him desired not the heart of the fair queen. The beautiful, seductive, yet powerful lady.

Interestingly was how history repeats itself. Throughout the course of civilizations there always is something alike in nature to the fair queen. It needs not to be a lady. It could be a man, a treasure, a magical being. Or, a weapon. A weapon like that possessed by Vindexta and his troop now. It is for people in need of power who are most likely to be enticed by such objects, for such objects are synonymous to power.

Perhaps that was why it was only fitting for Vindexta to codename his troop, the soldiers he trained to use mass weapons in their advantages, 'Helen'.

And there were others who thought similarly as he did. In twenty-one other bureau-administrated dimensional worlds, governors corporate with Vindexta to realize the restricted technology. They cultivated their own troops, waiting patiently for the toll of the bell of the battle. And when it did, they were quick to silent those who would oppose them. The conservative ones who favor the Bureau and its magic-only policy.

That night when Vindexta sent the twenty-one governors the message, riots took place. They quickly drew the attention of the Dimensional Navy. The majority of the manpower was sent out to these worlds to alleviate the tension. Thus when the news of the capital being controlled by the Lieutenant-General spread, none had enough force to challenge him directly.

The navies arriving at the twenty-one dimensional worlds had received the news within days of its initial breakout. They were caught in the dilemma of whether to help the locals first or to gather at Mid-Childa to take out Vindexta and his troop.

The final decision came from an admiral who claimed to speak on behalf of the Three Admirals. The order was for the warships to remain in their current positions and execute their respective missions.

"Do not forget," the admiral had said. "Our mission is to reach out to those who need our help."

Truth to be told, Teanna was not quite convinced with that idea. If the Bureau was destroyed, if they did not have even the power to defend themselves and the Main Office, then how could they say that they could protect others, or even help them?

But an order was an order. She was put onto a warship to deliver supplies to those fighting in the rebellious dimensional worlds, and to spread the message to those who are in other faraway places. From time to time she would think about her mentor, the lightening mage, about where she might be and what she might think of the current situation, and she would wonder why the blonde hadn't made an appearance yet.

It would be a few more months before she meets her mentor again.

.

In contrast to the hesitation circling in the Navy, the Ground officers seemed to know exactly what they were doing.

"Congratulation, private."

It was two days since the declaration of war, and Vindexta had requested the presence of several whom he planned for their uses during the political war. He had set up the table and made his first move, but there were just few more pieces he had to add on to it.

In his office, Vindexta shook hands with the raven-haired girl, then with the blue-haired girl next to her. He spoke of praising words, but did not seem to contemplate as much as he should. Behind the two girls stood Yagami Hayate, who were just promoted to the position of major general, and were officially given the title of the chief commander of the special defense unit.

Vindexta was reluctant to give such title to Hayate at first. In fact, the whole point of having the special defense unit was not how it turned out to be. Now that the unit had proven their ability to the public and gained attention, he could not act on his original intention anymore. It was fine, though. He had other plans.

"… also based on your extraordinary performances in the short months you graduated from the academy, and with the difficult situation the people all across the dimensions are facing now, I thereby offer you the opportunity to be subordinates of general Yagami and myself."

The expressions on the girls showed hints of hesitation. And of course, Vindexta did not miss it. He expected as much. However, on the other hand, the chocolate-haired woman behind them did not even blink at his words. He wondered, was she expecting it?

"Permission to speak, sir."

He heard the blue-haired girl speaking, and shifted his attention back to the girls.

"Permission granted."

"Why us?"

He couldn't help but smirked.

"Why not?"

"Well…" Lillian Helig swallowed hard before answering carefully. "There are many other who have more experience than us, and many more who are faster, stronger, and wiser…"

Vindexta eyed Hayate again. Still, the woman showed nothing on her face. In fact, she looked rather bored in this entire conversation. Maybe it was a good time to let her excuse herself. Vindexta thought, and circled back to his desk.

"Before I answer your question, I sense that general Yagami here must be… _unentertained_, by such subtle matters. I don't suppose you would want to take a leave now, general? It is a matter for your benefit as well."

But Hayate nodded casually to the man, and replied in flat tone.

"Actually, it sounds like a good idea for me, Lieutenant-General. I have never been good at listening through lengthy speech nor decision making."

Bullshit. Vindexta narrowed his eyes for a brief moment. He did not know Yagami Hayate personally, but this woman had interrupted his plan of making the special defense unit the cannon fodder. He strongly doubted it was luck or pure coincidence that the woman signed for the job in the first place. So what was she up to now?

Though he tried, he could not see any deceit in the woman's uninterested expression. He wanted to be cautious about this, but there was just no way for him to tell what was going on in the woman's head.

Hayate, as if sensing the suspicion from the man, smiled mysteriously.

"Well, and I believe whoever Lieutenant-General assign to me. After all, you have a stricter standard than I do. Isn't it true?"

Vindexta did not reply, and Hayate did not press on for an answer. Instead, she, almost lazily, saluted to the man, and nodded to the girls. "General, private Fantasia, private Helig." And after that, she walked out of Vindexta's office.

Vindexta watched the woman leave until the door finally blocked her out of his view. He shook his head. He needed to be careful with this woman and figure out what game she was playing. Which was why…

He turned back to look at the two girls still standing in attention, but who now looked rather nervous as they sensed the subtle tension. He smiled.

"Well, come back to your question, private Helig."

He sat down behind his desk and watched the nervousness, the confusion, and the _fear_, inside the girl's sapphire eyes. He enjoyed those emotions. Secretly, they made him feel extremely powerful, like he was strong and they were weak, like he could do whatever he please.

"Consider this: why did this war start?"

The girls looked at each other, clearly uncomfortable, but perhaps more confused. Vindexta smiled, and offered no help. A reply from their side was needed. It would be the best indication to how much he could mold these two kids into the shape he wanted and _needed_ them to be.

"Because we are fighting for what we believe, sir?"

Lillian finally answered, and Salvia nodded silently in agreement. Vindexta nodded quietly, but he was laughing inside. That was what he needed, ignorance and blind loyalty. It was entirely possible that these two girls were too afraid to speak their minds, but that just meant he could control them like he did with many others, by the whip of power and fear.

"Good." He said. But perhaps only he himself knew it was not to say Lillian had a good answer, but because it was good that they dared not to oppose him. "And I believe you understand the gravity if anyone should be unfaithful to our belief, don't you, private?"

Lillian nodded, hesitantly. "But why would there be any-"

"Therefore," Vindexta interrupted, effectively shutting the unsaid question and making the girl back down. "We must have someone who can watch out for this kind of people, even as a precaution."

Someone. A spy. This kind of people. Those who oppose him.

The girls were silent. He continued.

"I chose you two because you are young, and because you have backgrounds that could relate to what I am trying to do here. You, private Fantasia, how hard did you train to make up your natural inability as a mage? And you, private Helig, remember how you almost lost your power and how people started treating you differently?"

The girls were still silent, but their heads dropped. And Vindexta smiled.

"Well then, would you make the right decision, side with the justice, and serve your people?"

The girls exchanged glance and considered it for a long moment. Vindexta sat back, putting a hand on the arm of his office chair. If they say no, or he senses any reluctance in their answer, he would have them handled tonight.

But he did not get the chance to do so.

After the long moment passed, both girls looked up to him. There was no hesitation in their eyes. They nodded simultaneously.

"Yes, sir."

"You will be well rewarded for your services." He grinned, and put both hands on the table. "Dismissed."

.

.

.

.

At the same time, not far away from the office, Nanoha Takamachi sat on the rooftop of the temporary Air Force base, looking up at the sky absentmindedly. She had been thinking a lot lately. Imagining all sorts of things. What would the world become, what was the high-ups planning, what would they have to do to bring back peace.

And what were her friends doing now.

Nanoha did not have answers for most of the questions she threw at herself. Not even if she tried to make up a reason. Everything just seemed to happen too fast and too surprisingly, like this was some kind of prank everyone except her knew about.

She thought of Hayate and their last encounter. She worried about her. Hayate was a kind girl. She makes tough decisions and some make her seem almost cold, but all her friends and families know deep down the girl feels guilty and heartbroken for them more than anyone else. She might seem careless and free sometimes, most of the time, but she bears a burden that only increases with each passing year, with each command she gives. Nanoha and Fate had decided to be her strongest shield and sword, to sweep away any obstacles on her path…

But what now?

And Fate. Nanoha thought about Fate as well. A lot. More than anything else. She thought about what might have happened to the gentle blonde. What could have made her take off so suddenly with the rest of the Harlawon family? Why was Chrono not with them and killed in the dark night in the street? She honestly did not know. She honestly did not understand why all these things happened, other than they did, and there must be something off.

But what was _not_ off?

She looked to the sky, imagining them suddenly appear from there and land in front of her to tell her everything is okay, that they would never be apart again. But imagination was imagination, it never happens. It is like the dream she had this morning, a dream of them gathering together and laughing at small things that made her feel so happy. It was a wonderful dream. But like all other good dreams in a dark hour, the happier they get, you feel lonelier and sadder and more lost when you wake up.

Would anything good happen soon? She wondered. It definitely did not seem like so, but a saying goes like this: 'The very next moment may be the answer to your prayer. To deny this is to deny the most important part of the future.' So Nanoha waited patiently, enthusiastically, staying strong and trying her best not to be brought down by whatever happened.

_Ah, the sky is so beautiful_. She thought to herself. She made a small wish then, a wish so small that might make people laugh. But why would what others think matter? Ever since her story began, it was small wishes that supported her through all the way, it was small wishes that connected her to her most precious friends in the world, and it was small wishes that made everything else she did worthwhile.

_I want to_…

She squinted when the cloud drifted away and the sunlight dazzled her vision.

And she heard sounds, voices, footsteps.

Nanoha looked down, and saw a group of people, in various colors of uniforms, gathering in front of the main entrance of the base. She blinked several times, not sure whether it was her eyes playing tricks with her. But the images did not go away, the people stood there, talking to somebody. Somebody she recognized.

Nanoha raised an eyebrow in surprise, and jumped off the rooftop. A gentle wind wrapped around her body to ease the effect of gravity. She landed gently behind the crowd, and walked toward them.

She stopped when she joined other curious Air Force officers and heard the people standing in the front most spoke.

"… we present not our respective unit, but as ourselves some Bureau officers who wish to contribute in bringing an end to the current dispute, and bringing peace back to the ground of Mid-Childa. Therefore, by the authority my comrades honored me, I offer the Air Force our services and willi to fight alongside you, until the day peace visit this land again."

The woman extended her hand.

Everybody held their breath, waiting for the chestnut haired man, the commander of the Air Force, to respond. There was no reason to refuse, but who knows what goes on in the high-ups' heads? It seemed like there was always a reason for them to say something completely unexpected to what the majority of the soldiers expect.

But the man smiled.

"And we should honor your courage and zealousness."

He shook the woman's hand.

The crowd broke into loud cheer. The Air Force officers shaking hands with the volunteers from all over the branches and giving pats on each other's shoulder.

"To peace!"

Someone yelled and raised a hand in the air.

"To peace!"

Others echoed and did the same.

"To justice!"

Another yelled from somewhere else.

"To justice!"

And the others echoed even louder.

Nanoha joined in, greeting her colleagues and welcoming the volunteers.

She cruised through the crowd, sharing enthusiastic words with others while looking for someone she knew – there was no telling whether she was expecting somebody in particular – and saw a familiar face.

She pushed through the crowd politely, and tapped the blue-haired teen's shoulder. The young rescue corps captain turned around, beaming.

"Nanoha-san! I'm glad to serve with you again."

"Me, too. Subaru."

She smiled sweetly, and shook the girl's hand.

The very next moment may be the answer to your prayer.

To deny that is to deny the most important part of the future.

.

.

(to be continued…)

.

* * *

.

.

A/N:

That quote, 'The very next moment may be the answer to your prayer. To deny this is to deny the most important part of the future…'' was originally from Mitch Albom's new book 'The Time Keeper', which I just read not long ago. I recommend to anyone for his books, just google it :) He is a great author. The stories are fantastic, not in the way it is exciting, but more like they contain lessons for life and make you think of every small thing here and there.

As always, reviews are much appreciated and they are what make me want to write more and more.

I wish you all a very merry Christmas, and hopefully you get some gift you want :)

Cheers and until the next time!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (ie. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

.

.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 03 Therefore, Now**

.

.

It was February, almost a month after the war had begun.

Nanoha was sitting in the cafeteria with Vita and Subaru. It was lunch time. Images and short video footages flicked on the cafeteria TV while the reporter addressed their importance and their relations to the recent events taking place in Mid-Childa and in other dimensional worlds at war.

It was clear by now that Vindexta had controlled the media stations on the ground. All the reports favored his side. The side that started the war.

Revolution. That was how they put it. Mid-Childa and other dimensional worlds were _revolting_. But were they really? Or were they just playing a dangerous and expensive political game?

Occasionally, the technicians at the Air Force base would capture reports by other squadrons or the Dimensional Navy from other dimensional worlds, and they told a completely different story than what was shown on the TV.

In other worlds, people were _dying_. Men were conscripted to the armies to fight the Bureau. There were only two choices – use the gun to shoot the enemy of the governors or be shot by the governors. Innocent women and children were forced to become labors of ammunition productions. Houses were commonly mugged, destroyed, or both. Wealth was taken away by the governments to get more supplies for the armies. Food became rarity. Water became something one had to fight to get.

They protested to the Ground several times, sending letters and images to the Main Office and to the media, but there was no response. Even so, Cendrik still believed everything could be solved with diplomatic. He told them to be patient. All they had done – all they could do – was to patrol around the cities and make sure that their own cities would not come to the same destiny as the cities in other dimensional worlds.

But how long could they keep this up?

The reporter was saying something about the Rebel successfully defeating the Bureau troops in one of the worlds participated in the riot. They were winning, he said. And Nanoha pushed away her plate, disgusted.

Winning. What a funny word to use. When the citizens were dying, when innocents were tortured because of the godforsaken ambitions of some politicians, how could _anyone_ be winning?

"I'm full. See you guys later?"

Subaru nodded while continued devouring her food, totally unobservant to her teacher's mood. Vita on the other hand gave her a knowing glance, but said nothing. Nanoha smiled at them, and got up to leave the table.

Then, someone called her name.

"Instructor Takamachi!"

It was one of the captains of the air force squadron. A well respected man, good commander. Just like Hayate. Nanoha thought while saluting to the man. The man returned it, and quickly put his hand down.

"Lt-General Kentoru wanted to see you."

Nanoha nodded, and followed him away.

.

Sometimes Nanoha wondered why the man still stood on the sideline when there was so much they could have done. He must have seen the reports like everyone else. No, he probably have seen even more, known more about what the wars did to the people in other dimensional worlds.

So why would he not react?

The door to the man's office slid open silently. She saw the man sitting behind his desk reading something. She stood at attention and raised her hand in salute.

"Takamachi Nanoha reporting, sir."

The man looked up from his desk to her and smiled, waving a hand to the chair in front of him.

"Please come in, and have a seat."

Nanoha did what she was told. She wanted to ask what this was about, but the man had returned to his document. She stayed silent for a while, as she felt the man needed to finish reading the document before they speak. Though, she had no idea why he would summon her if he was not ready to talk to her.

And finally Cendrik closed the folder with the document and looked up to her, his hands put on the wooden desk, entwined. He spoke gently.

"Captain, I have a special request for you."

"I will do what I can, sir."

Cendrik smiled, but it was not because he was happy to hear her willingness for her services. It was simply political, like what one would do facing an awkward situation or the kind that was just there because there was nothing to say.

"Before you hastily agree, I hope you can read through this first."

He pushed the folder across the table to Nanoha, who took it curiously and flipped open the first page. She stopped immediately after reading the first few words.

"No need to put on that face, captain. It was just a little promotion."

"I don't-"

Cendrik raised a hand. He was not finished yet.

Nanoha quieted down, letting the man continue.

"You are a very experienced soldier, yes. But you are also an excellent instructor, one of the best if I might. A material best for the commanding position. And we both know there are needs for more commanders. Besides, this is a position granted for you."

"A position that I refused to take."

Nanoha interrupted again. It was quite unlike her to be so heedless in respond to her superiors. Might it be the reports on the TV that disturbed her enough to lose her cool? Or maybe it was her own doubts toward this man?

Cendrik did not seem to mind that. He did his homework after all. He knew why Nanoha had not accepted those promotions before, and he also knew much more about the young woman. Her passion. Her personality.

Those were why he chose her.

"With the new volunteers, I need someone who can manage them. Someone with good reputation. Someone who can teach them. Most people don't see it this way, but these people might be the key to breaking this war. Do you understand what I mean?"

He resumed to his speech like Nanoha had never spoken.

And this time, he clearly saw the hesitation in the woman's eyes. She was considering it, but still not quite sure.

Cendrik had learned long before, a good commander can take many different shapes. Some of them brilliant at strategies and calculating gain and loss. Some of them quick to react on the unexpected. Some of them spoke powerful words that uplift soldiers' spirits.

And some true in their hearts.

Those commanders, they act on pure motives. They do what they think from the bottom of their hearts is correct. They fight because not of what lay ahead but what show behind. They will not say they could come back from the battlefield alive, instead they fight harder than any other soldiers to ensure that.

While he needed commanders of bravery, cunningness, and all other traits for the current squadrons, he also needed one such commander to lead the volunteers. That troop had more diversity. They were like the different colors of light rays shooting out from a prism. It was through combining them together, that they could become a stronger, pure white light.

And Nanoha, through almost everything he heard and read about her, met such qualification.

"Will you fight with them?"

Make them one.

Nanoha stayed quiet for a full minute, and she sighed.

"When can I start training them?"

"As soon as you walk out of this room."

Nanoha raised an eyebrow. Apparently this man had planned all these already. Maybe he was not that simpleminded or naïve as most people thought. She suspected he even foresaw her agree with the promotion.

Cendrik smiled as if in respond to her mind's question. He sat back and opened his drawer, pulling out a picture frame. He gave it to Nanoha.

"Captian… no, major, do you mind listening to a story?"

Nanoha did not see a way to say no.

Cendrik smiled again, but it was a smile of weariness and sadness. He tilted his chair slightly, looking out to the window, to the blue sky.

"A long time ago, there were three very talented boys. As far back as their memories allowed, they had always been very close friends. Like brothers. The three boys admired the Bureau just like everybody else at that time did, and wanted to join it."

He chuckled.

"You see, at that time, the world was not as chaotic as it is now. The boys only thought it would be cool to be one of them. And joined the Bureau they did. Their talents were soon discovered by one young officer living in the same district as them, and she recruited them to the training academy together."

He looked down to his right hand on the table, the index finger slowly tracing along the line of the wood back and forth.

"In the academy, the boys grew to young men. They became stronger and stronger. In fact, so strong that before they even graduated from the academy, they were all offered a position in the unit that was led by the very same person who recruited them. Things were going great for them. With each passing day they grew even more in their strength, experience, and confidence. One of them became the personal assistant of the commander, and the other two, while still young, were captains for two of the unit's team."

His finger slowly came to a halt.

"But perhaps they should not have been that confident about themselves. In a particularly dangerous mission, the captain of the forward team stepped into the trap by their enemy. When he realized something was not right, his team was already surrounded. Everyone, even the commander herself, went to rescue them."

He paused for a moment.

"That day, the unit was hit hard. Half of forward team members were killed, others severely injured. The captain himself was lucky to stay alive, but was struggling with death. The reason he lived, was because the commander sacrificed herself to save him."

Nanoha felt her heart skipped a beat. Images of the past event, her own experience with death, came back rushing to her. And suddenly a terrible thought seized her mind – what if the day she had fallen from the sky, there were even more enemies? What if Fate, Hayate, Vita, or her friends came to save her, but was killed trying to protect her?

She was suddenly afraid of hearing the end of the story.

"With the commander gone, the second-in-command fell to the shoulder of her assistant. The young man tried his best to maintain the unit and keep an eye on his two friends at the same time, but he knew if his childhood friend is awake, he would have to tell him about the commander's death and he would have to take all the blames."

He looked at Nanoha sympathetically, but continued on with his story.

"However when the captain woke up, he had forgotten about the commander – his own mentor. It was the result of the head trauma, the doctor told the assistant. Not only that, the captain had lost his ability as a mage. The next thing people know, the captain was kicked out of the unit and transferred to the Ground, which had a relatively low social level in the Bureau system."

He glanced at the picture frame in Nanoha's hands, and whispered softly.

"But nobody ever mentioned to let the captain take the blame of the loss afterward. Then, soon the unit was disbanded, and I was transferred to one of the air force squadrons, away from both of them…"

The change of stance made Nanoha widened her eyes. She flipped over the picture frame. The image showed of three men standing side by side wearing the standard Navy uniforms. She blinked several times, and stared at Cendrik.

The man smiled sadly and stood up, walking and facing away from the table.

"I promised him to not tell the other what had really happened. He said it would be no good to anybody, but I think he was just blaming himself. I was, too. If I could stop the other one from going into the trap, maybe it wouldn't be like this today… but there is no use thinking about that. I still have to keep my promise, even though now the one who asked me is gone."

Suddenly, the man looked so small. He did not seem like the man who stood in front of the entire air force to tell them it would all be fine soon.

"Takamachi-san, I know about you and your friends, which is why I chose to share this story with you. How your path leads you in the future I cannot predict, but I hope at least my experience can offer you some guidance as to which way _not_ to go."

When Nanoha did not respond to his words, Cendrik turned back to face her.

"For which happened in the past is not subjected to changes achievable by the power of mankind, indulging in regrets becomes a luxury unaffordable to the future. Therefore, now, the only choice left is to express not in words but in actions."

And Nanoha understood, this man did what he did because he still believed in his friend, still was trying to save his friend.

.

.

.

.

Fate did not believe in God, but she had prayed every single day since all everything around started to go horribly wrong.

She prayed that everything was just a dream. She prayed that the world did not divide her from her precious ones, that her stepbrother had not died a terrible death alone, and that when she woke up she would be back at the apartment she shared with Nanoha and she would see them all again.

But so far her prayer was never answered, even here on the battlefield.

Another loud explosion. Another painful scream. Another pool of blood gathering underneath the burned corpse.

What number was it now of the number of people died in front of her? Fate could not recall. It was like a CD stuck on replay, the symphony of death repeating over and over again.

She did not even know why on earth they were fighting this losing battle, against one of Vindexta's strongest supporter. No, maybe if she thought hard enough she would know, but she did not want to.

Their leader said 'fight', so they were all here to embrace their death. No, that was also a lie. Everybody here would die _except for her_. The leader knew she would not die so easily.

Was that why he sent her?

She maneuvered in mid-air, dodging several bullets with ease, but the soldiers nearby her were not so lucky. Sometimes, it felt like she was Death itself.

Three more. She was still counting.

As Bardiche in its Haken Form sliced through the chest of two men in brown uniform.

She stood there, staring at their lifeless bodies. That was enough. She shook off the dripping blood on Bardiche, disgusted, and ordered through the encrypted channel.

"Attention all units, retreat. I repeat, all units, retreat to the warships."

Several scattered responses echoed her order through the channel, confirming their exit. Three voices asked for support as they were heavily under fire. Fate checked their positions, mentally calculating the time needed to secure all three locations. Half an hour, give or take, until they could all retreat safely if everything goes well.

The first two units would be fine, but the same could not be said for the last. She hesitated only for a second, and sent her plan to the others through the channel. No time could be wasted now; she had to act even if her plan was rejected.

In a matter of minutes, she had reached the first location. There weren't many people left – alive – from the Navy, but the enemy was still pressing on. Fate inhaled the fresh air deeply, tightening Bardiche in her grip, and charged toward the noxious atmosphere below. She raised the sickle with her right hand, and stroke down hard with gravity.

Her first target, the apparent forward captain of the assaulting team, did not even know what hit him before he lost his balance and tumbled down to the ground. For a second he was stunned, trying to push himself up. But he soon realized, both his hands were gone.

Before the man could scream out, Fate raised her hand again and silently ended the man's life. She did not want to kill, but if she had to, she would rather for it to be quick and clean.

The enemies all stopped upon seeing the person who stood in their way. They knew who this was, of course, and it was no doubt that they had no chance against her even if she was just one person and they could all attack at once.

Fate kept her stance, waiting for what remained of the unit to retreat far enough. She looked at the enemies' scared faces, suddenly found it funny.

The way they looked at her. It's not anger, just fear.

Now think about it, the black outfit, the sickle, and the ability to so silently and quickly take away life… She smiled bitterly at herself. Fit the profile perfectly.

Few unsettling moments passed, and finally the confirmation of the retreating unit reaching the designated distance rang in her ears. Fate acknowledged that, and pulled Bardiche all the way to the back.

"Arc Saber."

The device announced quietly.

She surged forward with astonishing speed. The giant circular blade of mana was released from Bardiche right away. It flew toward her enemies, sending them shouting and dodging in panic.

That was all she needed. With all the enemies busy getting out of the way of the powerful spell, Fate took off, heading straight toward the second unit's current position.

It took her a good eight minute to get the designation this time. But like with the first unit, the second unit was easy to spot. There were more of them remained, but the majority was running like mad. They were scattered all around the area.

And Fate saw why.

It was a laser cannon their enemy was carrying. Judging by the size, perhaps not even Nanoha's strongest shield would stand much chance against it. So of course, Fate's own shield was out of question.

A plan was quickly formed in her mind. She hovered in the air for a little longer, looking for an opening in the enemy's formation. There were some, but not big enough for most mages to break through.

But Fate was not in the category of 'most mages'.

She was an elite. The ace in the finest. She was one to achieve the impossible to the mortals.

"Bardiche."

"Assault Form."

The device glowed slightly as it changed shape from a sickle to its normal axe-like staff look. Two cartridges were loaded automatically. Fate smiled sincerely for the first time in months. Bardiche was really a good partner. It almost felt like the device could read her mind. She was thankful for that, for sometimes on the battlefield there was no time for her to give instructions to the device before her next attack.

"Plasma lancer."

She silently raised her staff higher, as several electrical arrowheads emerging all around her. She checked all the target positions again, calculating the approximate positions for which the attacks should be landing on.

Then, satisfied with her calculation, she shouted for the final command and pointed the tip of the staff toward the people beneath.

"Fire!"

The bolts shot with lightning speed downward, hit exactly where she had expected.

The startled enemies immediately abandoned their prey ahead, raising their rifles to the aerial combat mage. The laser cannon moved slowly around, looking for its new target. But Fate charged forward before they could find her in the sky.

Like a flash of lightning, she was already upon the soldiers who control the movement of the laser cannon. The first man screamed as an extraordinary force sent him flying backward and knocking over the others. Then, before they could react, they heard the calm female voice.

"Turn."

They looked up, and saw their attacker, the one female warrior standing in front of them, inviolable. Her beauty was breathtaking, and her power undefeatable. She spoke, her voice graceful and kind, like a goddess.

"You better run."

She smiled and left them.

It was then the men saw the lightning bolts speeding toward them. No, to be more precise, to the cannon. They turned pale almost instantly. If those bolts hit the cannon, the firestorm could easily kill all life forms within meters of the explosion.

They were no mages, and there was no way they could stop the menacing magic. So they ran, staggering and crawling away from the device as best as they could. The soldiers around all noticed it as well, and they quickly retreated to the safe distance away from the cannon.

With their life on the line, they had forgotten about their prey.

Fate, who was floating several feet above them, saw the chaos she created, and smiled at her victory. The threatened unit already evacuated to a safe distance from the enemy infantry. Even if the enemy decided to keep chasing after them, they would not be able to catch up before they reached where they could be picked up by other Navy troops.

As soon as she heard the explosion, she took off to the last destination.

It took her only five minutes to reach there.

The Navy troop was easy to spot. Surprisingly, this particular unit seemed to handle the situation quite well by themselves. Unlike the previous two, the unit was backing away from the enemy quickly and orderly.

Fate checked the time. There was exactly nine minutes to help these people retreat beyond the enemy's attack range before the pick-up units leave as well. Nine minutes. She should be able to do this. The designated area was two minutes of flight, six minutes if they run. If she held the enemy here for six minutes, the unit would be secured; in fact, even three minutes should be more than enough to get these people out from the attack range.

She stopped in the midair, studying the enemy formation. There were several weak spots for her to break through and defuse the attack front. She could even take out the unit.

But something felt off about the enemy. Fate squinted hard trying to find what was bothering her. She couldn't.

And finally she gave up. There wasn't much time left on the clock. Every second passing by staring at the enemy was wasted and should have been used to take actions. Fate took a deep breathe to calm her mind, and stroke down with Bardiche.

One of the opponents noticed her presence and was shouting something to his partner. The enemies almost instantly broke away from their formation, abandoning their weapons and running for their lives. How could such poorly organized troop be any threat to the Navy? Fate was confused, but she did not stop.

Brandishing Bardiche, she stroke again and again at the fleeing soldiers, sending some crushing down to the ground, and some flying up to the air. It was so easy. She spotted the man who was apparently the commander of the troop, and approached him, unhindered.

The man froze in place, murmuring something inaudible. He already closed his eyes, waiting for his doom. His face was pale…

It was then it stroke Fate that this man was a local. All the soldiers here were locals.

Though not poorly trained, these people were not supposed to carry out any attacks without one commanding units controlling them. They didn't have the ability, anyway.

And that would mean…

"Turn around!"

Her own face turned pale as she tried to get a hold to the commander of her retreating unit. There was no answer. She looked up, and saw the unit still heading to the same direction. She bit her lower lip and took off, not even looking back to the shaking soldier.

She rushed toward the Navy unit.

But it was too late.

She watched as people screamed and fell down to the ground, blood spilling everywhere. In matters of seconds, the unit was in chaos.

Her heart sunk. Snipers. They were ambushed.

A bullet shot at her but was dodged with ease. She looked around to the skyscrapers nearby but could not determine where exactly it came from. More and more people fell down. The number of snipers was unclear, but she knew it was more than she could handle in the current situation.

There was only four minutes left.

The military encrypted channel suddenly came to life, the image of a young woman jumped out in front of her. She was one of the communication department technicians. For her to call right now would mean…

"Enforcer Harlawon, please retreat now. We are running out of time."

Fate looked to the unit under attack, obviously hesitating.

The woman tried again, this time with more urgency in her tone.

"Enforcer Harlawon, there is no time. Retreat at once. Abandon the mission of rescuing the 517th unit. That's an order."

Fate looked at the young woman, and back to the ambushed unit. She wanted to help them, she wanted save them, but she couldn't. They were soldiers, and she was too. They knew they might not come back from the battlefield the day they signed up, and she knew she would need to make decisions based not on what she wanted but on what was best for the majority of her people.

Even if that means watching others die in front of her, helpless to save them. She bit her lower lips even harder, and forced herself to confirm the order.

She glanced at the still fighting soldiers for one last time, branding their images deep in her memory. She knew this would come back to haunt her later, in her dreams or when she was alone in the bridge of the warship, staring out to the universe. In the ceremony to remember all the lost souls or in the darkness. She would remember all the battles she participated. Big or small, win or lose, for better or for worse. It didn't matter.

Then, she took off.

.

.

.

.

The world was different now. No matter how hard she prayed for it to be nothing but a bad dream, time would not turn back and things could not be undone.

Though she never anticipated her path to be so different from that of the others, though deep inside she still naively believed she would one day return to their side, with each passing day she could not deny the possibility drifting farther and farther away from her.

Sometimes she was uncertain of what was more important to her any more. Sometimes she fought back the idea of replacing one with another. Sometimes she realized maybe farewell was inevitable. Most of the time she felt lost, and at those time the memory of a sweet smile, a warm hug, a soothing voice would come back to her mind.

Through the darkest time, there came the brightest light. Even with the cruel reality that separated them, her love to her never died even for the slightest bit.

She was strong for her sake. Every time the thought of her crossed her mind, she felt alive again.

Therefore, now, she would do what she could, she would fight with all the strength she had from the memory of her. The strength she gave her.

Therefore, now, she looked up again to the sky that once brought them together, and made the little wish that they could be together again.

.

.

.

(To be continued…)

* * *

.

A/N:

I purposefully left out names in the last paragraph. It's up to you to interpret who spoke it. Was it Nanoha? Fate? Or…?

I hope you enjoy this chapter. If not, go on youtube and look for a song called 'soshite ima' by Asami Seto.

As usual, thanks for reading, and reviews would be _very_ appreciated.

Until next year :p


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (ie. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

.

.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 04 The Separate Path (Part 1)**

.

.

After war broke out in Mid-Childa, the world was quickly divided into dominions. The North, under the protection of the Saint Church who claimed their neutrality in the dispute in the very beginning, remained undisturbed. Afraid of the power of the ancient Belkan, Vindexta had agreed to the treaty in which secured the peace in the region. The Air Force, wanting to avoid as much damage to the cities, had signed on it as well. Thus, the north Mid-Childa was regarded as the sanctuary by refugees of both common people and soldiers.

The capital and its surrounding cities were, of course, under the jurisdictions of the Ground Army, or who now called themselves the Revolution Army. Centering at what was originally the Mid-Childan Main Office of the Bureau, the Revolution Army quickly spread their branches outward. They had successfully forced the Air Force out from its original base at the central Mid-Childa and into the south.

They had also claimed authority in the west front, destroying any Bureau influences left there. But in the east, the fighting continued. With the majority of the troops still in the west front, scattered and exhausted and unprepared for the next battle, the Air Force could hold on for a little longer.

Nanoha Takamachi stood on the roof of what was once the city council building of Odieus, a once busy city on the boundary of the central and eastern Mid-Childa. Her eyes squinted hard to see clear the view on the horizon. She could make out the moving troop of the Revolution Army, marching in their newly designed dark green uniform. But what, or who was that behind them? It was the color of brown, but the Revolution Army had abandoned the Bureau's ground force uniform.

She squinted harder. _Could it be…_

But there was no time to ascertain the true identity of the hazy figure. The almost mechanical voice echoed through her earpiece, announcing the start of the battle.

"Targets five hundred meters from attack range. All units prepare to engage."

She prepared her Raising Heart, its weight in her palm making her feel more at ease. She breathed in and out deeply, focusing her mind on the current situation.

The volunteer unit, who were nicknamed 'Wings', under her command had one objective in this battle – to assist in delaying the Revolution Army's advance. The Air Force, while having the upper hand in this battle, would gain no advantage in keeping this city under their claims. Odieus was too close to the central Mid-Childa. When the main troops return from the west front, they would not be able to hold this area for long.

Besides, the supply route was very unstable. Many cities en route were heavy under fire as well, not to mention the distance was twice that of Odieus to Plamousa, the supply center of the Revolution Army. They had planned to retreat after this battle, regardless of the outcome of this battle.

Nanoha still hoped they would defeat the Revolution Army though. If they do, at least the remaining citizens here could evacuate to a safer place, maybe with them to the further east cities, or escape to the north, where the flame of war could harm them no more. She did not like the idea of not being able to save these people completely, but it was something she came to realize and began to accept.

A sharp horn sounded through the entire city, and the aerial mages raised high into the sky. The central guards began casting their bombardment attack spell once they were in their assigned positions, while others busied themselves to prepare for the subsequent combats.

Strays of different colors of magic beams fired at the marching deep green uniforms in more or less the same time. The cries of the enemies sounded muffle, but nevertheless loud enough to make them feel horrible for sending the attacks. Some younger and less experienced ones even looked away from the scene of burning fleshes and spilling blood.

Nanoha did not look away. Not exactly because she was used to seeing people get hurt on the frontline, but she remembered what Fate once told her.

'I couldn't save their lives.'

It was one of those times the missions did not end very well, and she had to confront the criminal in a dance of live or death.

Fate did not have a choice, as many of her friends tried to convince her since the very first time her hands were stained with blood. It was her hands that slayed, yes, but it was not her fault that those people died.

'I know that. I know what I have to do. I have known it even before I decided to become an enforcer, back when we were still rivals.'

She chuckled then, because the memories of the old days came back to her.

'But… Sometimes I wonder: if I was just a little stronger, a little smarter, maybe those people could be saved.'

Nanoha still remembered the way that beautiful face softened even further when she thought it was already the gentlest expression she had ever seen.

Fate looked so alone then. Yet, there was something growing behind the softness.

She turned and looked straight into her eyes, and she saw how the ruby eyes were shining with determination. Fate did not shrink behind her fear and guilt to the reality, instead she accept all of it and keep her chin up. It was always something Nanoha admired about her, and at that moment, the sense of respect grew stronger than ever.

'But what I think does not matter, what was done was done and I know it is unlikely my last time to take away a life. So I found my way to make amends to those I could not save because of my weakness.'

_How_?

'I look at them as who they are.'

And that was always kept in Nanoha's heart. Now that she had to face similar situation as well, it brought her great comfort and sense of responsibilities at the same time. With each passing battle and each enemy falling in front of her eyes, she understood more about those words.

She did not want to take away lives, but she wanted to stop the war and put an end to the tyranny of Lieutenant-General Vindexta. Because of that, she could not be soft to the enemies as long as they don't surrender, and that meant hurting them until they could not stand in her way, perhaps once and for all. For that, the least respect she could show was to take the images of their last hours, minutes, even seconds in her minds.

She was not like Vindexta. They were not like Vindexta. They knew the gravity of their actions and the value of a life.

The shootings slowly came to the end but the enemies were still marching forward. The central guards backed away from the front to where the full backs were, letting the forwards and guards taking their places.

She took note of their positions, comparing it with the formations she was given in the strategy rehearsing meeting. So far everything was going as they expected.

But she was waiting, really, for something to appear out of the blue and surprise all of them. On the battlefield there was always unforeseen events, be it a surprise attack from the enemy, or the sudden appearance of an ally. Soldiers, especially commanders, were trained to look out and for signs of such events.

So what would it be? Did their enemy prepare something special for them? Did Cendrik send support to them? Well, not likely. Their objective today was to retreat.

She kept her eyes on the people engaging in close combat, but once in a while her gaze would wander around for a minute or two, searching for anything out of ordinary.

The first thing that caught her attention was the cloudy sky. It had gotten darker even though it was just the middle of the day. She frowned a little and called out the weather report from Raising Heart. Sunny with some clouds in the sky, it read, low chance of precipitation.

She raised an eyebrow at that. Weather report was not the most reliable kind of information (even on Mid-Childa), but it was worth paying some attention to. There were many mages around, it was likely that some of them know spells that could cause the change of weather. She refocused on the back and forth offense and defense between the troops.

Ten minutes later, a horn sounded from the northwest.

Nanoha looked up to the direction and saw smokes rising in that direction. Her heart skipped a beat at the possible implications, and her hands moved almost subconsciously, quickly adjusted the volume of her earpiece so she could better hear the conversations between captains and the control center.

"What is going on?"

One of them demanded. Nanoha recognized the voice belonging to a short-tempered but well-known man.

"The radar! They trespassed without the radar detection! But how was that possible…?"

The voice answering sounded outraged and exasperated.

Several others chimed in and demanded further to know who was coming and what should they do. The control center kept silent for a long moment, until finally the frustrated voice was replaced by a gentle, calm one.

"It's the Revolution Army main force. They must have rushed back from the west front."

It's Kentoru Cendrik's voice. Nanoha was surprised, and she bet others felt just the same. Shouldn't the Lieutenant-General be staying at their base at the south? Why was he here?

Cendrik spoke again, this time much faster, but still maintaining the steadiness.

"It's alright. They still need at least half an hour to reach us. So here is the plan – our brave forwards will give those in front of us a fistful, force them to back off beyond the boundary, and I will be instructing the bombardment team to get prepare. Forward team, as soon as you hear my command, you will stop whatever you are doing and retreat as if running for your life. When the bombardment begins, we stick to our original plan. Clear?"

"Yes sir!"

And with that, they all went back to concentrate on the battle again.

Nanoha took a deep breath, and started instructing her own team to move to their positions.

Underneath, the melee mages were fighting like mad men. They pushed and pushed to the enemy, summoning balls of magic and slashing with their weapons of various shapes, some even bunching and kicking.

It worked. The enemies backed down. They did not understand why all of the sudden these people were fearless of the mass weapons they were pointing to them. No matter how many shots they fired, it seemed to be nothing more than annoying bug bites to the mages.

For the first time, they had no idea what to do.

The forward teams pushed even harder, and within eighteen minutes, they had successfully chased the enemies out of the city boundary. And they heard, almost at the same time, Cendrik yelling through the earpiece.

"Retreat!"

They did not as much as exchange looks with one another. Simultaneously, all of them turned around and raced back into the city. The enemies were left confused and scared, unsure of how to react on this sudden change of action. The dark green mass was still backing away like waves in low tide. However, Nanoha observed, the brown uniformed soldiers had marched forward, pushing them back into the battlefield. Someone was standing in between the brown and the dark green, saying something…

And it was her time to make a move.

"Let's go."

She said to her team, and they nodded nervously back at her.

The enemies started moving again then, realizing it was a trick and the Air Force was backing away to a safe distant. They made the desperate attempt to catch up, but it was too late. The central guards had readied their casts, and as soon as the enemies stepped in their attack range, they started shooting.

Everything was going awfully well, to be honest. It seemed like they could get away from this battle without any casualty. Vindexta would definitely be outraged to find out about it, and the morale of the Revolution Army would be down for a long time perhaps.

But something did not feel right.

Nanoha was flying in the sky, preparing her signature Divine Buster spell to once again force the enemies to back off. But in her mind there was just this strange feeling that made her hairs stand.

She had learned long ago that sometimes it is instinct – a sudden sense of threat – that saves one's life in a battle. Right now, that instinct was telling her to escape, to move everyone out of the city. She wanted to follow that warning, but an army does not act on one soldier's instinct. She needed facts, evidences to support her concerns.

What was it? She looked around, frantically looking for signs of danger, but found none.

She found none, because the dangers were not present in where she looked.

It was way beyond her vision could reach…

The roaring sound of engines made her jump. She looked up so quickly her neck hurt, and there it was. Two small jets were flying with full speed from the northwest toward the city of Odieus. And something, perhaps the way the jets were rumbling in the sky or their altitude, seemed weird. It was like they were carrying something heavy…

And it hit her. That type of jets were designed to carry maximum amount of cargos and fly with top speed; they were usually used to transport supplies or attack teams with heavy ammunitions.

"Shoot down those two planes! Northwest, 2-1-9-5-0. _Bring them down!_"

She heard herself screaming into the earpiece, and several people looked up to either her or the planes. Some followed her orders and tried to reach a position where the attack could be carried out, but it was futile.

Nanoha felt the urge to leave her post and Starlight Breaker the planes herself, but she could not. She could not abandon her post just like that because her team would just fall apart and the operation would be ruined. Besides, she was too far away from the planes anyway, they would arrive wherever they were aiming before she could reach them.

The planes sped up, and altered their course slightly, heading downward now. Nanoha looked on with frustration and quickly glanced at where they were heading to.

And when she realized what was ahead of the planes, a sinking feeling dawned on her.

They were heading straight toward the Air Force's temporary base at Odieus, the city center building.

"Somebody bring those two planes down! They are heading to the base – it's suicide bombing goddamnit!"

As the realization sunk in, some mages rushed toward the planes, and the control center was in chaos as personnel struggled to evacuate from the building. Out of the blue, Nanoha heard Kentoru Cendrik speaking directly to her.

"Major Takamachi, I'm handing the command power to you now. If I don't survive from this…"

He did not get to finish his last words.

The planes crushed into the city center, creating explosions that shook the ground. Nanoha watched with a hand covering her mouth. Her suspicions had proven to be true: the planes carried bombs with them.

She felt at lost. Too many things crossed her mind at the same time that they all blended together, and she felt nauseated.

The enemies – those in the dark green uniform – were awestruck at first, but they quickly came back to senses and moved forward with a new gained confidence as they cheered at the sight of black smokes rising from the city.

What to do now? Nanoha shut her eyes tightly and opened them, shut them again and reopened them again.

Think, Takamachi Nanoha, think! And act!

But she was paralyzed. The static noise from the earpiece rang like a spell that immobilized her entire body.

"Nanoha-san, watch out!"

She heard Subaru yelling at her from somewhere, and she looked down to where the voice came from. And she saw a rifle aiming at her not far away from where Subaru stood.

Everything happened in slow motion then.

Nanoha could clearly see the smile on the man's face as he was certain of taking down his prey; she could see the trigger being pulled and the bullet spiraled upward to her, sparks flying out in all direction of the muzzle; she could see Subaru's expression changed from shock to fear.

And she heard her own voice asking.

'_Would I die here, today?_'

She blinked. She should dodge, she should at least raise a shield, but why did her hands feel so stiff and Raising Heart so heavy all of the sudden?

She shut her eyes – or was she just blinking?

"Sonic Move."

And that phrase rang in her ears, louder than any other sound on the battlefield. Nanoha had heard it countless times before over the years. Sometimes, after the war began, the voice even appeared when she was too deep into those memories or when she was dreaming. As for now, she was not sure whether she had imagined it.

The answer only came when she felt familiar warmth wrapping around her body, and a pair of strong arms lifting her up, taking her protectively into safety and away from harms.

She opened her eyes, and she saw her. She saw Fate.

Fate looked relieved, scared, pained, happy, and angry all at the same time. For a second, Nanoha thought she must have died already and was in heaven.

"What are you doing?!"

But Fate's harsh voice drew her back to reality. She was not dead, not even scratched, and she was not in heaven, she was still in the frontline of the battlefield.

Nanoha wanted to embrace Fate so badly, but Fate, perhaps sensed that, had quickly released her from those comforting arms to let her fly on her own. She turned around to face the man who fired at Nanoha, and without another word dashed forward with Bardiche in its Zanber Form, quickly ending the man's life.

Nanoha watched. She had never seen Fate killing anyone before. Fear found its way in her heart, and she just couldn't believe how _casual_ Fate seemed to be when she attacked.

She was not sure whether it showed on her face, but when Fate returned to her side, the blonde only looked at her shortly, before turning around as if to check whether more assaults were on their way.

"Nanoha, you are the commander now, right?"

She nodded, even though the blonde could not see it.

"Then get a hold of yourself. Your people are still waiting for your commands. If you keep this up, they will die. You will die."

Nanoha did not know which part of those words smacked her into her senses, but she nodded again, and threw all the personal emotions out of the window. Fate was right. They could not afford another moment of daydreaming. To lose concentration on what's at hand was to give up the will to survive. She had not given up, now Fate was here even more so.

She tapped her earpiece to make sure it was functioning properly, and spoke into it. Now she was the calm, experienced, and reliable Major Takamachi Nanoha again. She was the ace people looked up to and trust their lives with, and she would not fail them. She would lead them to safety.

"Major Takamachi Nanoha now taking over the command position. Attention all units, execute retreat plan as rehearsed. Unit 1 to 4 search for survivors from the control center. Unit 16 to 18 cover them. You have ten minutes. Then we go where we are supposed to go. Clear?"

"Yes ma'am!"

Several voices answered in unison, and Nanoha tapped her earpiece twice before saying "Takamachi out."

Now she turned to re-examine the battlefield, she realized that Fate did not come alone. Several enforcers were on the battlefield, helping the retreating units to carry wounded soldiers or cover fire for them.

Fate was busy as well.

"Continue with the operation… Don't give me _that_. I _know_ you are capable of holding those third-rate troops… No, go with them. Make sure there is no ambush… Where is the scout? Did you know whether there will be a second attack yet? Yes? No? Good…"

And Nanoha almost wanted to laugh. She had rarely heard the Fate at work. If not for the current situation, she would be really happy about finally being able to.

Fate noticed Nanoha looking at her. She paused for a second as if embarrassed. The look reminded Nanoha so much of their old days together when nothing was so complicated. The questions that buried deep in her mind almost found their way out. She wanted to ask her so badly what those words on the piece of paper she left them mean. She wanted to demand what happened that night at the Harlawon residence, why was Chrono killed and what was he doing there anyway.

But Fate once again turned away.

"Let's get them out of here first."

She said quietly.

Nanoha could not disagree, so she swallowed the questions back and nodded.

"Yeah, let's do that first." And then we will talk.

Fate did not respond.

.

The next three hours were exhausting. By the time they had all retreated out of the city, the regular Revolution Army had also arrived. With the help of the enforcers Fate brought along, the Air Force had successfully fended off the assaults, and after a while, the Revolution Army turned around and went back to Odieus.

Somebody had obviously interfered in this chasing, either deciding it was not worth the time and effort, or just simply felt like they had achieved their objective so they should stop when they were still winning.

But Nanoha had the feeling it was not just that.

At the time the Revolution Army stopped their advance almost relu ctantly and maneuvered around, she looked back to the city. She thought she saw a group of brown uniformed soldiers standing on the wall of the city, looking at them. And the person, probably the commander, standing on the highest tower…

"Nanoha."

Vita called. She was standing next to her, looking over her with an expression that Nanoha thought she had seen somewhere, long time ago. The red-haired girl looked a little more tired and sad than usual.

"Testarossa said she needs to speak with you."

Nanoha did not know if she was shocked by the fact that, Fate, after all that happened, wanted to speak with her, or that she was half-expecting something from the Fate now, but not the way she wanted. She nodded thankfully at Vita and got up from the corner she was sitting at in the captain resting room.

She was going to ask Vita where Fate was, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she already knew the answer.

"I will see you later, Vita-chan."

Vita nodded and leaned back against the wall, looking more like her actual age.

.

Nanoha found Fate in staff office of the library they had taken refuge of.

Of course. As the commander of another army, she would not be anywhere else. She was bound to be where everyone could find her and consult for her opinions. She was the ace enforcer Fate T. Harlawon, not just Fate Testarossa Harlawon anymore.

Fate noticed her presence, even though she did not turn back from the window that outlook the sceneries of the empty city below. She greeted her softly, by her rank.

"Major Takamachi Nanoha."

She said. Major Takamachi Nanoha. The name sounded wrong coming out from her mouth. Nanoha frowned a little but quickly responded.

"Fate-chan."

Her voice was not loud, but it was sure and determined. A sharp contrast to the softness in Fate's greeting.

Fate turned. For a moment Nanoha could not read her face. In the first millisecond she thought she was happy to hear that, but the next millisecond she looked sad. Then she looked frustrated, pained, and there was so much more emotions. Nanoha did not know whether she imagined all that. Right now, Fate looked perfectly normal, perfectly emotionless.

"Yes, Nanoha."

She greeted her again, this time correctly and gently.

"I wanted to speak with you. Would you mind to summon your people to the library atrium? There is an announcement I need to make."

Nanoha nodded.

"Thank you." And Fate smiled.

There was awkward silence floating around them. Nanoha wanted to say something – to ask her all the questions – but she could not find her voice. Fate had broken away from their eye contact after saying the 'thank you', and presumed to look at the sceneries outside again.

When Nanoha finally spoke, the first thing that came out was not exactly what she wanted to ask about.

"What's the announcement?"

Fate turned and looked at her, surprised, but she quickly collected herself and smiled at her. For some reason, she looked rather sad about the topic.

"You will see."

She paused.

"Shall we?"

Nanoha hesitated, but nodded anyway. On their way out of the office, Nanoha caught a few of her old students wandering around to look for coffee, and she instructed them to take everyone to the atrium. Everyone who wanted to listen to enforcer Harlawon's announcement, anyway.

The teenagers quickly ran off in different directions, forgetting about their coffees.

Within half an hour, almost everybody was gathered in the atrium. Fate stood at the doorway, with her colleagues standing behind her in a perfectly straight horizontal line. They were emotionless, not even showing a bit of tiredness from the earlier battle. Some awed that they were truly significant warriors and mages, but some just frowned at the lack of display of emotion.

Nanoha was standing in front of her group of people, with Vita and Subaru behind her. She had no idea what this was about, but she waited patiently for Fate to begin.

Fate looked around the room of Air Force mages looking intently at her, but never once back to her own people.

For some strange reason, Nanoha thought Fate looked like a reluctant lecturer who was forced to give a not-very-important lesson to a group of curious students who would not like it.

"Alright, I will try to make this brief."

She sighed, and began.

"As some of you might already know, the majority of the force of the Dimensional Navy is out there in other dimensional worlds doing what they are supposed to do. After the war broke out, we have been experiencing a shortage of manpower ourselves. My unit and I myself just came back from the battlefield in administrated-world No.69 before joining you on the battlefield. I sincerely regret for not being able to come earlier, and my heart is heavy for all those have fallen and lost."

She stopped, putting a hand on her heart and lowering her head to show grief and respect. The others followed suit, taking their hats off and holding them before their chest.

A full minute passed until the small ceremony slowly ended and everyone raised their head once again.

Fate was the last one. When she was finished, she looked up again to the people, and Nanoha could tell something was not right. The expression on Fate's face sounded the alarm in her mind, and she was just about to say something to interrupt. It had something to do with her disappearance three months ago, and she had the feeling that to let it be spoken would be to let Fate slip out of her world again to the total abyss.

Please, let that be the end of her speech. Please keep the good image of hers in the minds of all these people around here. Let no other surprise come and they could once again be reunited…

But Fate, maybe sensing what Nanoha was about to do, spoke all too suddenly in a strangely calm but solemn tone.

"That brings me to my intention of coming here today. In the face of the rebellion from Tory Vindexta and his conspirators, the Dimensional Navy has launched a project to counter the force of mass weapon."

She paused to inhale deeply, while others murmuring among themselves, and resumed to her speech.

"The purpose of this project is to enhance the linker core capacity and activity so to improve the amount of mana flow and storage of the subject; through this the subject's strength, agility, and control over mana increase. This provides incredible advantages when battling against mass weapon."

The murmur grew a little louder. Nanoha just glared at Fate angrily.

"However, I do want to draw your attention to the undiscovered risks of being such object, as the project itself is… _progressing_ still. I, on behalf of the Dimensional Navy, stand here today to ask for support and alliance from the Air Force."

And she stopped there, abruptly like how it began. She turned to look at Nanoha. Everyone turned to look at Nanoha.

The woman being stared at, however, did not notice other people's intense and questioning gaze. She focused on one person and that person only – Fate. Who looked like she was expecting her answer. But she already knew the answer, did she not?

Nanoha bit her lower lip and for a brief moment was very tempted to say "yes" just to get into the blonde's face, but she didn't. She stopped and looked at all other people, and realized that her next word would decide everything. She could not afford to act emotionally this time.

"No."

She almost had to squeeze the answer out of her teeth. She was furious. How could Fate do this to her? But the blonde just smiled innocently and pleasantly at the answer.

"Is that an official refusal for corporation with us, Major Takamachi?"

She hated it when Fate said major Takamachi.

She nodded stiffly, and went on to explain as if to make the point even clearer.

"We do not consider human experiment to be legal, enforcer Harlawon."

Nanoha knew she had hurt Fate by saying that. She of all people was the most disgusted by human experiment and was perhaps the most traumatized by it. Well, Nanoha did not know about now, but she definitely still was when last time they actually talked to each other.

Her stare shot daggers at Fate for an explanation, but the later offered none. Instead she just smiled sadly and nodded in agreement to Nanoha's decision.

"Well then, I will just say that if any of you want to participate in the experiment, I will take you to our base, or the door is always open… but since your commander here does not agree to our new philosophy, we will be neither allies nor enemies from now on, and perhaps it will be hard for you to find our door."

She smiled, and Nanoha hated the way it looked. It felt like she was set up.

"Don't you dare even _thinking_ about corrupting my people."

"Well, corrupt or not, it's for the history to decide."

She smiled and gestured for volunteers to step out. The crowd was dead silent, but after a long moment of awkwardness, three people moved toward the front row hesitantly. Each of them shivered as Nanoha's burning gaze landed on their back.

Fate looked at the three young males who walked forward to her. Judging from their physical appearances, they were probably not strong warriors. She did some calculations in her head, and nodded to no one in particular. Two men in black uniforms behind her came up to take the young men away.

"My business here is done."

She closed her eyes momentarily and sighed, in a way that one might describe as in relief if disregarding the current situation. Then she opened them again, and looked around the still silent atrium.

"Personally, I thank you all for your services and your hearts of wanting to bring back justice and peace as we knew, and I regret of not being able to work together. Farewell, and wish every one of you good lucks."

She turned, and simultaneously all other people in the black uniforms followed her action. Their movements so consistent that few people sighed in marvel.

But while most were distracted by the performance of the crew, Nanoha was still staring daggers at Fate. She felt like Fate was escaping from her and all of her questions because the blonde never looked at her again after she refused to join side with the dimensional navy. It was like she was avoiding seeing her face or talking to her. But she did not want to let Fate go. She never wanted to let her loose again after she thought she had lost her for so long.

"Wait. Just tell me one thing."

She called to the leaving figure, trying desperately not to sound like she was desperate.

Fate stopped as she was requested to, but she still did not look back to her. It was apparent that she was not going to. So Nanoha took a deep breath, and silently asked the only question she could ask right now, standing here.

"If you know we will become enemy, then why save me?"

Fate did not reply.

For a long time, she just stood there with her back to her best friend – or could they still be called best friend? And then, without ever replying to the chestnut-color haired girl, she walked away.

.

.

.

(To be continued…)

.

* * *

.

A/N:

Hello everyone! It feels like weeks since I finished the last chapter, but I suppose when you are bored and have nothing particular to do time seems to flow a little slower, eh?

Well, anyway, new semester starts tomorrow for me, and this semester there seems to be a lot of readings and writing reports for my new courses. I failed to write more chapters during the break, and I'm afraid that I might not be able to update new chapters quickly. The speed would possibly go back to the normal pace, once in a week or two weeks.

This chapter is longer than the previous ones because, well, I enjoyed writing this one and ideas keep popping up in my head. After writing Fate's departure I figure it is a good idea to end here and do a part 2 to make all other stuffs that are originally supposed to happen now happen later. XD

As always, reviews will very much appreciated so I can know if there should be some change to how this story is presented. Vocabularies, tenses, etc. Or just any thoughts after reading.

So, until the next time :)


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (ie. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

.

.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 05 The Separate Path (Part 2)**

.

.

Soon after the departure of the Dimensional Navy, all the commanding officers of the Air Force were gathered in the main conference room.

Nanoha was among those summoned, of course, but she was surprised to find that Vita, whom because of her expertise in strategy planning had attended all the captains' meetings previously, were not invited this time.

Later on when she considered it, she would realize that this was the prologue of the inevitable. But as for now, looking around the room and seeing only certain officers present, she thought that maybe this meeting was rank-based, and thus there was really no surprise that Vita was not with them.

A man in his mid-forties stood to the front of the room, and cleared his throat. The room fell silent, and all eyes turned to him.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen." He began, placing a hand on the wooden table in front of himself. "I suppose many of you know who I am, but many of you don't. So for the sake for clarity I will just introduce myself – my name is Simon Saune, first-lieutenant. Some of you might recognize me as the captain of the 1001 Squadron, and senior officer of the Air Force. However, today I speak to you as one of the officers belonging to the chain of command established by our deceased commander, Lieutenant-General Kentoru Cendrik."

Simon Saune paused at this point, as other captains and senior officers murmured among themselves, surprised, by the existence of such a secret chain of command. There were some doubts displayed openly on some of the officers' faces, while others remained mostly curious about what would happen next. Simon waited until the murmurs died down and the room restored to the original silence, before he began again.

"I know that you would want proof of what I am saying, but I cannot grant you that. I too know that many of you will be reluctant to follow my orders if I just declare for myself commanding position. But worry not, my friends, because I will not do that. It is not what the lieutenant-general would want to see in any case."

He made a gesture to the other side of the room, and a screen was slowly brought up.

"Instead, what I am going to do is this. I will be hosting a vote, a vote which all of you will participate in order to choose our next leader. Note that I am only the host, and will not be on the candidate list – I admit my poverty in the ability to lead our people."

The room burst out into murmurs again. In the midst of all the different kinds of voices, someone called out.

"And how would we know if our new leader is not someone from this secret chain of command you said?"

Some of the officers nodded in agreement, and looked doubtfully at Simon Saune. But the later only smiled.

"I asked him the very same question when he appointed this task to me. And this is what he said: the chain was not designed for people of certain thoughts to seize power, but instead was meant to be a safety lock that, in the face of emergencies, ensures that people of talents would stand out to enforce their respective talents. The complete list of the chain, as to who is responsible for what, was kept only to the lieutenant-general himself. I have no way of knowing if anybody sitting here is part of the chain."

After this, the doubts on most officers' faces eased. They might not completely trust what Simon Saune said just yet, but what the man said made sense, and so they didn't see a reason to not believe him, either.

"And to be fair," Simon Saune added, as the screen finally reached its maximum height. "we shall make the election of our new leader transparent. I believe that at least in this case there is no room for me to cheat for anybody I might favor."

The offer sounded reasonable enough. Most officers nodded and leaned back in their chairs.

"Now then," he put both his hands on the table, and looked around the room. "let's begin the nomination."

The room was silent at first, the officers seemed to be engaged in their own thoughts. Simon Saune waited patiently, until finally the first hand was raised hesitantly to the air.

"Lieutenant-Colonel Minna of the 1501 Squadron."

He nodded, and recorded the name through his intelligent device.

Four more officers held their hands in the air, almost simultaneously. Simon Saune called out the first two of them, and recorded the names on the screen, but when he turned back to look for the next person nominating, all the hands were put down. The other officers apparently had the same candidate in mind.

He was about to call it to the voting process, when all of a sudden a young woman raised her hand. He called her.

"Before I give out my candidate's name, I just have a question." She put both her hands on the table, entwining her fingers a little bit nervously. "What if the people at the south base do not approve the new leader we choose?"

"I doubt they will," Simon replied kindly, "but if that should be the case, then we will have another voting regarding the same issue when we get back to the base. As for now, we need to elect a new leader as soon as possible, for the Ground is still close behind us."

The young woman nodded, satisfied by the answer, and opened her mouth again.

"Then, I would like to nominate Major Takamachi Nanoha."

And that brought Nanoha's attention, who was considering of whom in the candidate list she should give her vote to.

"Wait- what?"

But her voice was submerged by other voices of the officers exchanging opinions and discussions about Nanoha. Surely she was capable of doing so, they said, she was the Ace of Ace after all, admired by so many young mages as idol and respected by the elders. That would help in a great deal if they ever need to use some good public image.

Also, they said, she was famous even in the tactical instructor corps, and she was an excellent soldier – her resume was to say the least, impressive. She was the one who stopped the Cradle and knocked over all the cyborgs on her way, and didn't she get appointed to be the captain of that volunteer corps? Oh, and don't forget the leadership she displayed just now, when facing the Dimensional Navy.

Nanoha was speechless. The excited conversations among the officers grew to such extent that she did not know how to stop them. It might sound strange, but she felt like if she spoke then, she would be devoured at once like a sheep in the middle of a wolf pack.

"Very well," Simon Saune smiled and looked around the room, and finally rested his gaze on Nanoha. "Shall we proceed?"

The officers agreed, and the room once again fell back to silence.

And even until the end of the voting, Nanoha still did not find the chance and the correct words to express her objection on the matter.

.

.

Several hours later, Nanoha sat by herself on the roof of the library building they took refuge of, bathed in gentle moonlight. She felt lost.

The council of officers turned out to favor her as the new leader, as she feared they would. They apparently chose her not because she was best at politics, but because they wanted somebody that could raise the spirit of the soldiers in all circumstances.

It was not that the captains and senior officers did not believe in her ability, but just that overall, she seemed to have something extra to offer the Air Force other than her strategic talent and battle experience. And that something, the good public image, could come in handy in a civil war like this.

Nanoha did not want this, but she did not have a reason to say no either. Maybe she could have said that she did not see herself suitable for what they wanted from her, and that she was still too young, too inexperienced to be the leader of the Air Force. But then who would these people turn to? What, if any, could she do for her people if she did not trust herself?

Things would likely change once they get back to the southern base. Some of the officers who noticed her mood told her. But for now just stick with what everybody wanted.

She supposed she could. As long as the things she had to do involve nothing political, she would probably be fine – she could be a captain, but definitely not a general. She needed to be on the battlefield with her people, not sitting back and watching what happen, but that's all.

Once she calmed herself down enough, her thoughts started to wander again. She thought about Fate and her uncharacteristic speech that afternoon, and wondered what force in the universe could have changed the blonde's mind to support, and even openly advertise human experiments.

It was abnormal. What happened this afternoon was like a nightmare. But then again, ever since that night, nothing seemed to be normal anymore.

Half-heartedly, she held her right hand out to the night sky, extending her fingers as if to reach the moon. But of course, she did not even come close to the moon. Nanoha did not know why at all she did that, but the notion seemed to remind her of something deep in her heart, like a truth that she once knew but had forgotten.

What was it?

She rested her arms at her side, staring into the night sky and thinking about the question. But her mind seemed to be playing tricks with her, filling her head with little thoughts that rush back and forth. Whenever she tried to grasp at one of them, it just slipped out of her mind and disappeared.

She was trying so hard, that she did not notice somebody approaching her from behind.

It was until the person called out for her that she was aware of her surrounding once again.

"Nanoha."

She turned, and saw the familiar little redhead knight standing several feet away behind her.

"Vita-chan?"

At first, Nanoha was confused. She thought that maybe after her mind, her eyes started to play trick on her as well. But as she blinked several times, she realized that something _was_ off about what she was seeing.

Vita was in her barrier jacket.

"Why are you -"

"Nanoha,"

But the Belkan knight interrupted her question. She did not seem impatient like whenever she interrupted other people's sentences, rather, she looked calm and at peace.

"Do you believe in Hayate?"

The question was odd. At any other given point and time, Nanoha would probably ask Vita why she asked so before she gave her answer. But at that moment, she was overcome by a sudden sense of obligation to just answer what was asked. And so she replied without hesitation.

"Of course I do, with all my heart."

If it was other person who said it, one might think the answer sounded corny or simple-minded. But because it was Nanoha, the girl who would reach out to others who wronged or attacked her just because she wanted to befriend them, it was true.

Maybe Vita recognized that. The usual harsh but good-nature smile returned to her childish face, and she seemed happy more than ever.

"Well then, keep believe in her."

Nanoha noticed the mana gather under Vita's red boots, and she knew then Vita had intended to leave, to go back to where she should be – to the other Wolkenritter, to her Meister.

At first, she did not know what to say or how to act. Maybe she should stop her, maybe she should tell her good luck, or maybe she should ask her what Hayate wanted to do staying inside the Revolution Army.

But, as her eyes met Vita's, the images of what she saw earlier in the city of Odieus appeared in front of her eyes again. And now, she knew who the commander of the brown uniform troop was, and somehow, what that person really wanted…

Believe in her.

She nodded silently at Vita. The Knight of Iron Hammer, without saying another word, took off into the embrace of the calm night sky, and return to where she truly belonged.

Believe in her.

.

An hour or so later, some officers found Nanoha in the hallway walking toward the resting room.

They expressed to her the sighting of the Lord of the Night Sky on the battlefield this morning in the city of Odieus, and their suspicion that Vita would betray the Air Force. The officers seemed nervous, either about their finding or about suggesting to arrest the redhead knight, it was hard to tell.

But Nanoha just smiled her usual smile, her worries seemingly all disappeared now, and told them that there was nothing to worry about.

The next morning, before the troop was set out to the march to the closest base, there was a short and simple ceremony of recognizing Major Nanoha Takamachi as the new leader of the Air Force.

The communication link to the main base at south was successful, and they explained to the people at the southern base briefly of the events taken place. Surprisingly, the southern base agreed on the leadership of Major Takamachi, whom after receiving the news appointed Subaru Nakajima to take over the captain position of the volunteer troop.

Thereafter, based on the existing publicity of Major Takamachi, the movement of the Air Force attracted more and more attentions from all around the place.

Then, among knowing the crisis devastating the Bureau itself, and the noble performances of the Air Force when they crossed fire with the Revolution Army, more and more citizens openly showed their supports toward the troop.

It would not be long before the news reached the core center of the Ground Army, and yet another fierce battle taken place.

.

.

.

(To be continued…)

* * *

.

A/N:

Hello everyone, feels like a long time since the last chapter. If you have been waiting, I feel sincerely sorry about not being able to update sooner (schoolwork, bleh), but if you haven't, well xD

Next chapter I intend to explain what Hayate is up to, but until then you can guess what our favorite commander has in her mind.

Until the next time :)


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: This story has absolutely nothing to do with the actual MGLN series after StrikeS (i.e. Vivid or Force). I own nothing but my own poor imagination and the terrible personality that made me write this story.

.

.

* * *

.

.

**Chapter 06 Be Prepared**

.

.

Fruits are sweetest before they all of sudden turn sour.

It is perhaps the same with many other things, like the love of young couples. The love is like fire, so wild, fierce and careless. In the beginning, they dance around each other, celebrating and glowing with the seemingly endless energy and emotion. But as the excitement wears down, they suddenly realize the agony from the wounds as a result of their burning love.

The same could also be said about belief, for there are many instances that untruthful leaders twist the truth to grant their personal ambitions. However with the test of time, even the most carefully constructed lies would eventually be exposed in some way. Those who blindly trust everything they are told would at some point realize what they once believed without questions is just illusions. Often they turn their back to the world and refuse to believe in anything anymore.

Maybe this resembled closely to what was happening in the Ground Force of Mid-Childa, or rather, to those who involuntarily involved in the Revolution Army.

The Main Office was once a beautiful building. The hallway, made out of the special minerals in Mid-Childa, glows like stars even in the dimmest of light. The several gardens had evergreen plants grown in them, and the air always so fresh and sweet. It used to be filled with delighted conversations and laughter, with people who were enthusiastic about their works and current lifestyle. In their eyes the future seemed bright. In their eyes everything that is wrong can be corrected one way or another. It used to.

As for right now, two young women walked toward a certain lieutenant-general's office. The sound of their heels clicking at the cold, grey floor was the only voice that could be heard. The corridor, long without the care of janitors after they all escaped to safer cities, looked a lot more like a tunnel leading to an underground world full of darkness.

"How is the report coming along?" Asked the elder one. Her face had not changed much after her childhood, still young, even a little bit childish, and neither had her height for that matter. It was commonly described as the trend of her race. Not something she was proud of, though. Right now, however, she looked tired. Maybe it was because of that she looked older than she used to be, or maybe the aging somehow did catch up with her body in the past months. There was no way to tell.

"As scheduled." Replied the younger one. She, too, had matured a lot since the beginning of the war. Before the year began she looked just like any other normal fifteen-year-old in Mid-Childa, but at this point of time she did not look much younger than her supervisor.

"Any difficulties or concerns?"

"Not that worth to bother you, major-general."

The elder woman suddenly stopped. The girl followed suit immediately, and turned to look at her supervisor, only to find the later smiling mischievously at her.

"Does that mean 'they don't look significant enough to mention', or 'I can handle it, so don't worry about those'?"

Before the girl who was her secretary could answer this question, she spoke again.

"Nothing is not worth of bothering me, Salvia."

Salvia Fantasia thought for several seconds, and nodded.

"Yes ma'am." She replied with obedience and respect, the way a child would speak to someone whom he or she admires like a hero. Just as they were about to resume to walking, however, she remembered she had yet answered her supervisor's question, and quickly added. "And it's that I think I will be able to handle the minor problems properly, but if I am not certain of anything, I will definitely report it to you or Rein-san."

Hayate smiled satisfactorily, and started walking again.

Salvia followed closely after her, like a loyal servant to her master, despite the fact that their relation was nothing of that sort. One could suppose that she had just been around with the Cloud Knights for long enough time to naturally adapt their behaviors, but one could also argue that maybe it was the lovable characteristics of the young Lord of the Night Sky taking a hold on the teenage girl.

Or, if one knew well enough what people in the Ground had gone through, and what Hayate had done for them, it might seem only reasonable to show the deepest and most sincere love and respect to the brunette.

"Oh, that reminds me," Hayate casually began. "what is the weather report?"

Weather report. The words made Salvia's heart dropped. Between Hayate and her, 'weather report' was not what it literarily meant. It was a code they had agreed on, for it was rumored that the ears of the new order had been listening behind these walls, at all time. No, Hayate did not actually ask her what the weather was going to be like. She was asking her how the preparation for briefing lieutenant-general Vindexta had gone.

The day Vindexta asked – no, threatened without saying it – Lillian Helig and her to be his spies, they both said yes to it, and Salvia had come back to her supervisor with heavy heart, but knowing exactly what she had to do.

Before that day, Hayate had expected as much. She asked the girl whether she would be willing to play a double agent between Vindexta and herself, and the girl said yes. Though, she did not believe the lieutenant-general would choose her, because no matter how she looked at it, she was nobody, the lieutenant-general probably did not even know her existence days before the promotion.

At that time, Hayate just smiled mysteriously in her usual way. And when the day came, it proceeded exactly as what she had been told. Salvia, although surprised, kept her promise.

Later on when she asked her supervisor how she had known, the later just said she would explain when the time is right.

So ever since then, she had been reporting Hayate's actions to the lieutenant-general, only the ones they (it was Hayate who made the decision really) deemed to be fine for the man to know, of course. Not surprisingly, the albino man was not only hard to deal with, but also hard to work for. There were many times when Salvia thought the lieutenant-general had realized their little scheme, or he was just unimpressed with what she could offer to the extent that he was going to kill her.

Anyhow, it was no wonder why she had a heavy heart even at the mention of going to see the lieutenant-general.

"Thunder storm." She replied gloomily, and wondered if today would be the day her fear actually came true.

Hayate, on the other hand, laughed and patted her shoulder cheerfully.

"Lighten up, soldier. There are always rainbows after the thunder storm."

"I hope you are right, major-general."

Hayate smiled, an expression saying 'of course I am right'.

They turned left at the last corner. The view of a completely different corridor jumped into view. It was painted dark fern green, just like the color of the Revolution Army uniform. There was only one door in this corridor, painted the same color as the wall. One could easily miss it if not paying enough attention.

The young women stopped at where they were, taking a moment to collect their thoughts and emotions, and head to their destination.

.

"So what is you excuse for not taking down that goddamn group of traitors?"

Vindexta's voice was cold, and filled with a silent rage that one could not miss. The thirst of blood in the man's eyes was obvious. Put those together, it was very hard to not see his urge to tear the short brunette before him into pieces with his bare hand. The open show of intend to kill terrified Salvia, to the point that all muscles in her face were too tense to display any emotion.

On the other hand, the said brunette was very calm, as if Vindexta's unspoken threat was merely a daily routine she had gotten used to. In fact, she looked even a little bit amused.

"I am deeply hurt by that, lieutenant-general. Three weeks ago I received your direct order to take over the city of Odieus from the hand of our enemy, and left for the battle as soon as I can. Now that I have come back with victory and brought glory to the Revolution Army, this is all you had to say to the hard-working soldier?"

She paused only briefly, with a hint of confusion on her face.

"Or did I not receive the order correctly? In the order you sent you did write 'bring down Odieus'…"

Salvia was in awe. She was present at the time the order arrived at their base. In fact, she remembered all of them looking at the senior officer with desperation and pain. They knew that Vindexta had meant for them to attack the city and kill all the Air Force soldiers there. It was a trap really. If they did not commit, they would be branded with the names of traitors and be executed, but if they did attack… it would mean facing their friends and mentors and stab them right in the heart. None of them thought they could get through this one.

But Hayate did not even budge when she saw the order. She simply waved her hand and told them to be ready to take off for a crucial battle. While some were shocked by the casual comment of the commander, most were just afraid and in tear because of the inevitable they could see.

However, when they actually got there, it was nothing like what they had imagined.

True, the battle was bloody. A lot of people lost their lives. Some even saw acquaintances' dead bodies on the battle field. Despite these, none of them actually had to face their friends. The commander of the troop arrived before them was a middle-aged man, proud and arrogant. He dismissed Hayate's demand for the control with insults and humiliations to the mages, saying they were powerless in the face of the new technology.

For the most part of the man's insults, Hayate just smiled with ease. Without saying another word she returned to her people and told them to just wait. And after watching the chaos in the front, the soldiers in the green uniform been pushed back to almost where their base was, the man had eventually come back and asked Hayate for help.

From that point on, and even after the main force merged with the troop, Hayate remained in control of the movement for all time. In the desperation to retreat and the anger of the loss of their comrades, the Air Force soldiers fought even harder. Hayate knew that, so she chose to not press on too hard, and just slowly and methodologically drove the force out of the city. Once they retreated a safe distance away, she stopped the advancement of the troop.

"Shut up." Vindexta coldly interrupted. "I said that, right. But both of us knew clearly what it meant!"

"Yes, of course. Bring down Odieus, is it not? So here I present the Revolution Army and our people the city of Odieus, free from the hands of our enemies."

It was brilliant the way she put it. Instead of insisting on her 'opinion' on what the order actually meant, Hayate simply responded with another reciprocating question that Vindexta could not answer in one simple sentence. And to make the point he was trying to make, that Hayate had intentionally taken it easy with the Air Force, would take more than a sentence to do.

"You let them escape." Vindexta stated, the intention to kill submerged into those bloody red eyes, but right now he was more than annoyed. He could not object to what Hayate just said, doing so would mean to contradict his own order and in the surface looked like he was denying Hayate's effort in winning the battle.

"Ah, you see, lieutenant-general, there is a reason for that. Even dying lions can roar. If we had chased the Air Force in hot pursuit, we might lose more people than we had to."

She paused briefly. The smile faded a little.

"Not to mention that the Navy was with them, for some reason."

Vindexta smirked. Although Hayate had left him with no excuse now to kill her and all the mages under her command, he still doubted her loyalty to him or the idea of mass weapon. For now, he had another thing to tease her with. And this one, he was certain she had no information whatsoever for.

"What, major-general, scared of the ghosts of the Navy?"

Hayate laughed.

"I hardly think scared is an appropriate expression, lieutenant-general, as I have not heard much about the rumors. That being said, though, it never hurt to be extra careful in a war like this, is it?"

The ghosts. Salvia felt cold sweat soaking in her palms as she stood still in the shadow in the corner of the room. She heard about those rumors, maybe much more than Hayate had. In the beginning she thought it was just the kind of story soldiers love to tell others in a bar, overly exaggerated and based on mostly imaginations. However, these days there were words passing around not just in the base, and she heard sober men talking in fear about the shadows appearing in the battlefield from nowhere…

"And if I may say this, this kind of lack of information should not be anything bad to the troop, since it is our agreement in the beginning of the war that I should just focus on the Capital Defense Force. But of course, if you have changed your mind…"

"That's enough, major-general." Vindexta shot her a sharp look. She might have gotten away with the being branded a traitor because of her clever wording, but it did not mean he would not be looking for excuses to get rid of her in the future. In fact, if she dared to continue right on, it would only indicate a direct challenge to him.

Hayate nodded, not saying another word.

Vindexta turned to look at Salvia, for the first time since both women had come into his office. He had made sure to display enough threat and power in front of the girl. It was one of the techniques he found useful in the new career he had chosen. Fear.

The tense expression of the girl's body language was satisfactory to him. The light reflecting from the colds sweat in her forehead, the clenching of her jaws, and the rigidness of her postures… they were all expressions of nervousness. Nervousness from fear. And it was fear that he held to be the ultimate cause of people's obedience to him. Because they fear for their lives, because they fear for the punishment he could impose on them, they obey his orders.

If people feared him, he could do whatever he wanted. It was a display of power.

"As for you, private."

"Yes, sir?"

"I want a report of the battle of Odeius by tomorrow. I should not need to restate your duties as the subordinate of the major-general."

"Yes, sir. I understand it, sir."

"Good." Vindexta finally said. He felt his head started aching already. Lately it had become increasingly hard to figure out what exactly the brunette was up to. And even though the spy reports from the young private was more than what he had expected, they just didn't seem to update quick enough, or accurate enough for him to intervene. A cunning one. He often thought to himself. If only he could trust her to be on his side in this revolutionary war. And so, he gave both young women a long, harsh look, before almost gladly dismissed them.

.

"I am interested in that rumor."

After they had gone back to their base, and into Hayate's office, the brunette casually began as the raven-haired girl prepared for information on events she had just received from other divisions.

"What rumor?"

"The Ghosts of the Navy."

Salvia stopped her movements. She thought for what to say, and turned to look at Hayate, who appeared to be thinking herself. She was not sure what she had heard before. Maybe just the stories that people here only recently started to learn about. She was not entirely sure as what to make of those stories, and wondering about the truth herself, but was what she heard accurate enough to tell her busy major-general?

"Well…" She slowly began, considering what words to use. "I have heard something from the soldiers in other divisions."

"Go on. Start with what is common in all of the versions you have heard." Hayate seemed to still be thinking, but Salvia wasn't sure what.

"Okay then." She cleared her throat, trying still to come up with the most proper words she can find. "As I understand it, some people believe there are ghost soldiers in the Navy. They… well, they appear on the battlefield out of nowhere, and strike at the enemy with such force and speed that most people didn't even know what hit them until they see the Ghosts."

"That sounds just like a very well-trained troop to me." Hayate thought for a second. "What made people call them Ghosts?"

And here came the hard part. Salvia swallowed hard, not sure if what she was going to say would turn out to be ridiculous.

"I think they call them ghost soldiers, first because the soldiers seemed to be unstoppable. Not just the normal kind of excellent in battle skills, but like really, unstoppable. Some said they saw the Navy people trying to stop them and got badly injured."

Hayate thought for a second.

"It is possible that they were too carried away in the battle that they can't distinguish friends from foes, but go on."

Well, it is possible. But it would sure take a lot of 'carry away' to almost kill your own pals, would it not?

"The other part is actually their battling skills. They got none apparently. From those who said to have encountered the ghost soldiers, they said that they behaved just like machines. There was no tactic in what they are doing. They just walk straight at you while casting magic spell, or waving a weapon. But they don't scream in pain, they don't show any sign of fear, well, they don't even seem to have the adrenaline rush. It seems."

Salvia stopped and waited for another comment from her commander. And of course, Hayate had come up with some possibilities she never thought of.

"I cannot say for sure what they thought they saw was true or false. For all I know, a soldier could have adrenaline kick or other sorts of body chemical that paralyzes their sense of pain, or even their muscle altogether. But this does sound interesting."

Then, seeing that Salvia had more to say, she gestured for her to finish off.

"Okay, this part of the rumor is what a lot of people said in common, but I am in doubt with it myself. In any case, they said that familiar faces keep reappearing again and again on the battlefield. Some were confident that they saw people who they had killed. They said they would have to shoot at a soldier several times before he or she finally fall down and stops moving. But, after several months, the same person, or who seemed like the same person, would appear in the battle again."

After she finished, the brunette stayed silent for a few minutes longer than before. There was something different in her expression this time. Hayate was frowning, like the way she did when she was considering something really important and urgent. She seemed uneasy and worried, too.

The last part of the rumor was the most disturbing description of the rumor. Taken aside that it was possible for the Navy to pull off a psychological strategy that made everyone look alike if not the same, and that maybe people were just fighting harder and harder because of how angry they were to the Revolution Army, what remained would imply something terrible… something Hayate had knowledge and experience with, but did not want to imagine.

"Hayate-san?"

Salvia called, with a hint of uncertainty and worry. She probably did not notice her change of appellation to the brunette.

Hayate looked at her. She was young. Sometimes she thought she had seen some of herself, some of Nanoha, and even some of Fate in this young woman. Maybe it is the generation in which they were born in that made each of them, so distinct and different from each other, also very much alike to each other.

Along with her, there were many others she wanted to protect, or had to protect. Her family the Cloud Knights, her friends, and her colleagues. Some of them had unfortunately already been sacrificed, as victims of this meaningless war.

"Let's not worry about that for now." She gave Salvia most reassuring smile she could muster, and called up the terminal to display her agenda for the next few days. Whether her worry was right or wrong, it was simply not something she could help with for the time being. Right now, the more important thing for her was to focus on finding how to get by the war with as little casualties and loss of lives as possible.

If she had the ability and power, she would choose to release the world from all the pain and hopelessness right away. But she doesn't. She had realized the limit of her own power at a very young age. And if that meant she could only protect so many people at a time, then so be it. She would still do her damn best. The people at the Ground, the Capital Defense Force, were her responsibilities now.

Now they were here, all of them, trapped. There was no easy way out of this mess. They were either seen as traitors to their old friends, or as dispensable tools to their new colleagues. But in truth, they were all martyrs. They might never be known to others who come to be interested by the history of Mid-Childa, of the Time-Space Administration Bureau, or of mage wars. However, like many other unnamed heroes in the long history of civilization, they were people who held the brightest light of hope in the darkest of time.

And not long from now, the day the knights of Wind rises would arrive. At that time, the gentle breeze would bring blessings and true revolution to the land.

History could repeat itself, over and over again. It could be that human beings just make mistakes, understand their mistakes, and come up with a solution to fix them, only to make other mistakes or repeat the same mistakes. As well, the beautiful foreign queen might have come back in disguise, and seduced the king and his people into cherishing her powerful yet deadly beauty again. However, the loyal knights will not allow the kingdom to fall apart. Even if they cannot save the king, they will save this country.

For now, all they had to do is just one thing – be prepared..

.

.

(To be continued…)

.

* * *

A/N:

Sorry for the super late update. Hopefully people have not lost interest in this fanfic (yet).

Thanks for the kind reminder of the spelling mistake of the name of the character. I will correct the misspelling in the previous chapters as soon as possible.

Also, by no mean did I write this fanfic only for the sake to separate our beloved Aces, let alone let them hurt each other for no reason. Keep in mind that this is a "what-if" scenario of the MGLN world. If things go well (like in Vivid), nothing like what I wrote will have even the slightest possibility to happen, but if things go wrong in some way, some of these might.

What I intended to do is to imagine those times, and come up with what are the most likely responses from our Aces, because some of the most beautiful things happen in the most terrible environment (or at least I believe so). And this is about bringing out those beautiful aspects of the character.

Thank you again for reading this fanfic, and taking your time to write any criticism or compliment.

I will continue working on this story as much as I can, but as it stands, the update might still be slow ^^; so allow me to thank you for the patience as well!


End file.
